MIAMI (Legal Newsline) – Labaton Sucharow will lead litigation against Royal Caribbean Cruises over a stock drop associated with the COVID-19 pandemic, beating out a couple of competitors in the securities class action field.
Judge Kathleen Williams, of the Miami federal court, appointed the firm lead counsel on Dec. 23 – more than two weeks after Rosen Law and Levi & Korinsky asked to be put in control. She found the Indiana Public Retirement System to be the most adequate lead plaintiff.
INPRS has the largest financial interest in the litigation, Williams wrote.
Litigation blames the company for not adjusting to the loss of revenue because of the coronavirus.
“Defendants made false and/or misleading statements and failed to disclose material adverse facts about the company’s decrease in bookings outside China and its inadequate policies and procedures to prevent the spread of COVID-19 on its ships,” one the lawsuits says.
“Defendants caused Royal Caribbean stock to trade at artificially high prices during the class period.”
Royal Caribbean’s stock traded at $117 per share in mid-February but dropped to $22.33 by March 18. In addition to the loss in revenue, the company also faced litigation from more than 1,000 crew members.