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Court approves Manulife Securities settlement with Société Générale Toronto - Manulife Securities Investment Services Inc. (Manulife Securities) announced today that the Honourable Justice Colin Campbell of the Ontario Superior Court of Justice approved the settlement of a class action lawsuit that Manulife Securities commenced against Société Générale (Canada) (Société Générale) and related entities on its behalf and on behalf of all purchasers of certain investment products of Portus Alternative Asset Management Inc. and related entities. Under the settlement, Société Générale has agreed to repurchase deposit instruments underlying the Portus investments that are held by KPMG Inc., the Trustee in bankruptcy of the Portus estate, prior to their maturity such that the total face value of the all of the Société Générale deposit instruments will have been paid upon the completion of the settlement. Under the settlement, Société Générale continues to deny all of the allegations in the lawsuit and completion of the settlement is subject to Société Générale’s right to terminate the settlement if the Opt-Out Threshold provided for in the settlement agreement is exceeded. At the December 18th hearing approving the settlement, Justice Campbell commended Manulife Securities both for its action in 2005 in making its clients whole by acquiring their investments and in pursuing the class action law suit in a reasonable but forceful manner to ultimately achieve a fair and reasonable settlement for the benefit of all Portus investors. Justice Campbell also recognized the efforts of all parties and their legal counsel in bringing this matter to a satisfactory resolution. Notice of the certification and other materials relating to the settlement will be mailed to all Portus investors, posted on the Portus Group web-site and published in the Globe and Mail. Portus investors do not have to take any steps in order to participate in the settlement. Manulife Securities is a subsidiary of Manulife Financial, a leading Canadian-based financial services group serving millions of customers in 19 countries and territories worldwide. Operating as Manulife Financial in Canada and Asia, and primarily through John Hancock in the United States, the Company offers clients a diverse range of financial protection products and wealth management services through its extensive network of employees, agents and distribution partners. Funds under management by Manulife Financial and its subsidiaries were Cdn$385 billion (US$364 billion) as at September 30, 2008. Manulife Financial Corporation trades as ‘MFC’ on the TSX, NYSE and PSE, and under ‘0945’ on the SEHK. Manulife Financial can be found on the Internet at www.manulife.com. - 30 - Media contact: Tom Nunn Manulife Financial (519) 594-8578 tom_nunn@manulife.com |
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