Notice of Filing of Securities Class Action Against Friedman's, Inc., Victor M. Suglia, Bradley J. Stinn, Sterling Brinkley and Douglas Anderson HARTFORD, Conn., Nov. 26 /PRNewswire/ -- Shepherd, Finkelman, Miller & Shah, LLC (http://www.classactioncounsel.com/; e-mail: jmiller@classactioncounsel.com), announces that it has filed a class action lawsuit against Friedman's, Inc., Victor M. Suglia, Bradley J. Stinn, Sterling Brinkley and Douglas Anderson. The class action lawsuit is pending in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia. The lawsuit was filed on behalf of all persons who purchased or otherwise acquired the securities of Friedman's, Inc. ("Friedman's" or the "Company"), , between January 26, 2000 and November 17, 2003, inclusive (the "Class Period"). A copy of the complaint is available if you telephone us toll-free at (866) 540-5505 or e-mail us at jmiller@classactioncounsel.com. If you purchased or otherwise acquired the securities of Friedman's between January 26, 2000 and November 17, 2003 and have been damaged thereby, you may request that the Court appoint you as lead plaintiff no later than January 13, 2004. Any member of the purported class may move the Court to serve as lead plaintiff in this action through counsel of his or her choice, or may remain an absent class member. There are certain legal requirements to serve as lead plaintiff, which we would be pleased to discuss with you. If you would like to discuss this action or have any question regarding this notice or your rights, please telephone or e-mail James E. Miller, Esquire (866/540-5505; ) or James C. Shah, Esquire (877/891-9880; ). The Complaint filed in this case asserts violations of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and charges Defendants with issuing false and misleading statements regarding Friedman's financial results and business model, resulting in the Company materially overstating its earnings for the fiscal years 2000 through 2002, and the first three quarters of 2003. The Complaint claims that the earnings Friedman reported throughout the Class Period and representations concerning those results were false and misleading when made as Friedman's financial statements during the Class Period were in violation of GAAP and SEC rules. These improper practices are now the subject of an investigation by the Securities and Exchange Commission, as well as an investigation by the Department of Justice. The Complaint filed in this case also alleges that Defendants knew and failed to disclose material adverse information and misrepresented the truth about the Company, its financial performance, earnings momentum, and future business prospects, including that: (i) the Company's allowance for doubtful accounts was woefully inadequate; (ii) the Company's credit losses during the Class Period were significantly higher than its reserves and higher than defendants publicly represented; and (iii) Defendants had failed to properly write-off uncollectible receivables, and materially overstated Friedman's financial results by maintaining known uncollectible accounts as assets during the Class Period. As a result, Friedman's stock traded at inflated prices during the Class Period, increasing to as high as $17.50 on September 3, 2003. On November 11, 2003, Friedman's shocked the market by warning about its future performance, and the material adverse impact of the "increase in allowance for doubtful accounts." The Company also revealed that its Chief Financial Officer, Victoria Suglia, had been placed on "leave" as a result of government investigations. In addition, the Company admitted that it had to dramatically boost its allowance for doubtful accounts, resulting in a sizable charge of as much as $0.43 per share for 2003. In response to the Company's devastating news, Friedman's stock price plummeted by approximately 40% on unusually heavy trading volume. On November 17, 2003, the Company then admitted that it would be restating its historical financial statements for at least the fiscal years 2000, 2001 and 2002 and for the first three quarters of fiscal year 2003 and that Ernst & Young had informed the Company that it was withdrawing its audit opinions on the previously-issued financial statements due to, among other things, the concern over the accounting for the allowance of doubtful accounts. As a result of the foregoing, the Company cautioned investors that they should not rely upon the previously issued financial statements and related SEC filings for 2000, 2001, 2002 and the first three quarters of 2003. Upon this news, the stock price dropped to as low as $5.38 on November 18 and closed at $6.07 per share, down an additional 18% from the prior day's close. The Complaint charges that the individual Defendants engaged in this scheme to inflate the price of Friedman's securities in order to: (i) protect and enhance their executive positions and the substantial compensation and prestige they obtained thereby; (ii) enhance the value of their personal holdings of Friedman's securities; (iii) complete public offerings; (iv) prevent violation of the covenants in the Company's credit facility agreement and maximize the amount allowed to be borrowed by the Company under this agreement; and (v) avoid repaying millions of dollars in personal loans from the Company. If you wish to discuss this action, or have any questions concerning this notice, or your rights with respect to this matter, please contact James E. Miller, Esquire (866/540-5505; ) or James C. Shah, Esquire (877/891-9880; ). DATASOURCE: Shepherd, Finkelman, Miller & Shah, LLC CONTACT: James E. Miller, Esquire, +1-866-540-5505, , or James C. Shah, Esquire, +1-877-891-9880, ), both of Shepherd, Finkelman, Miller & Shah, LLC

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