WELCOME TO THE DELL SECURITIES SETTLEMENT WEBSITE

PLEASE BE ADVISED THAT THE TIME OF THE SETTLEMENT HEARING HAS BEEN CHANGED BY THE COURT FROM 9:30 A.M. TO 2:00 P.M. ON JANUARY 10, 2020.

This website has been established to provide general information related to the proposed settlement of the lawsuit known as City of Pontiac General Employees' Retirement System v. Dell, Inc., et al., Case No. 1:15-cv-00374-LY (the "Litigation"), pending before the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas (the “Court”). The capitalized terms used on this website, and not otherwise defined, shall have the same meanings ascribed to them in the Stipulation of Settlement dated September 13, 2019, which can be found and downloaded by clicking on the Case Documents tab above.

The entity that leads the Litigation, the City of Pontiac General Employees' Retirement System ("PGERS"), is referred to as the “Lead Plaintiff.” The company and individuals, Dell Inc. ("Dell" or the "Company"), Michael S. Dell, Brian T. Gladden and Stephen J. Felice, being sued are called the Defendants.  

The Court appointed the law firm of Robbins Geller Rudman & Dowd LLP (“Robbins Geller”) as Lead Counsel to represent Class Members.  

WHAT IS THIS LAWSUIT ABOUT?

The initial complaint in this action was filed on May 21, 2014 in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York. On May 7, 2015, the Litigation was transferred to the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas. On June 12, 2015, the Court appointed PGERS as Lead Plaintiff and Robbins Geller as Lead Counsel.

Lead Plaintiff’s Amended Complaint for Violation of the Federal Securities Laws (the “Complaint”) alleges that Defendants violated §§10(b) and 20(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 by issuing materially false and misleading statements and omissions during the Class Period. Specifically, Lead Plaintiff alleges that Defendants failed to disclose that Dell was experiencing weakened demand and pricing pressure in its PC product line in non-U.S. markets. Additionally, Lead Plaintiff alleges that as growth in Dell’s PC product line was declining, Defendants further concealed operational deficiencies within the Company’s sales division, which were also hindering Dell’s PC business. The Complaint further alleges that as a result of Defendants’ allegedly false statements, Dell’s stock traded at artificially inflated prices during the Class Period, until the alleged misstatements and omissions were disclosed on May 22, 2012.

On September 8, 2015, Defendants moved to dismiss the Complaint. Lead Plaintiff filed an opposition to Defendants’ motion to dismiss on October 22, 2015, and on November 23, 2015, Defendants filed a reply. By order dated September 16, 2016, the Court denied Defendants’ motion to dismiss. Defendants filed an answer to the Complaint on November 14, 2016.

On March 9, 2017, PGERS moved for class certification, to appoint PGERS as the class representative, and to appoint Robbins Geller as class counsel. Following extensive briefing in connection with PGERS’ motion to certify, the Court certified the class on March 29, 2018.

The parties conducted extensive fact discovery from November 2016 through June 2018. During discovery, Defendants produced over 87,000 documents, totaling nearly 600,000 pages. Lead Plaintiff deposed 17 witnesses, which included Dell’s current and former employees. After completion of fact discovery, the parties exchanged expert reports from seven experts in various disciplines and completed expert depositions in March 2019.

On February 18, 2019, Defendants filed their motion for summary judgment seeking to dismiss Lead Plaintiff’s claims in their entirety. On April 8, 2019, Lead Plaintiff filed its opposition to Defendants’ motion for summary judgment and on May 8, 2019, Defendants filed their reply. The parties also filed several motions to exclude the reports and testimony of the expert witnesses designated in this case. Defendants’ motion for summary judgment and the parties’ motions to exclude were fully briefed and pending before the Court at the time the settlement was reached.

In February 2018, the parties engaged the services of Eric Green, a nationally recognized mediator, to facilitate settlement negotiations. On February 23, 2018, the parties engaged in an in-person mediation session with Mr. Green in Boston, Massachusetts. Before the mediation, the parties submitted statements with detailed descriptions of their claims and defenses and supporting evidence. The case did not settle and the parties continued to litigate the case.

In June 2019, the parties engaged the services of Gregory P. Lindstrom of Phillips ADR, who has extensive experience mediating complex class litigations such as this, to facilitate further settlement negotiations. The parties attended an in-person mediation with Mr. Lindstrom on June 25, 2019. The case did not settle, but the parties continued settlement discussions with the assistance of Mr. Lindstrom in California. On July 26, 2019, the parties accepted a mediator’s proposal to resolve the Litigation.

The Class includes all persons and entities who purchased or otherwise acquired Dell publicly traded common stock between February 22, 2012 and May 22, 2012, inclusive (the "Class Period"), and who were damaged thereby. Excluded from the Class are Defendants, the officers and directors of the Company at all relevant times, members of their immediate families and their legal representatives, heirs, successors or assigns, and any entity in which Defendants have or had a controlling interest.  Also excluded from the Class is any Class Member who timely and validly excludes themselves therefrom by submitting a request for exclusion in accordance with the requirements set forth in the Notice of Proposed Settlement of Class Action (the "Notice") found on the Case Documents tab above.

WHAT DOES THE SETTLEMENT PROVIDE?

The agreement included, among other things, the Settling Parties’ agreement to settle and release all claims that were asserted or could have been asserted in the Litigation in return for a cash payment of Twenty-One Million Dollars ($21,000,000.00) to be paid by Dell, for the benefit of the Class, subject to the negotiation of the terms of a Stipulation of Settlement and approval by the Court. The funds will be distributed pro rata to Class Members who send in or submit a valid Proof of Claim pursuant to the Court-approved Plan of Allocation.  The Plan of Allocation is described in more detail at the end of the Notice. The Stipulation (and its Exhibits) reflects the final and binding agreement between the Settling Parties and can be found on the Case Documents tab above.

Class Members' recovery will depend on the number of shares of Dell publicly traded common stock purchased or acquired between February 22, 2012 and May 22, 2012, inclusive, the timing of the purchases and any sales, and how many other Class Members make claims. 

Although the information in this website is intended to assist you, it does not replace the information contained in the relevant case documents found on the Case Documents tab above. We recommend that you read the relevant case documents carefully and in their entirety.

YOUR LEGAL RIGHTS AND OPTIONS IN THIS SETTLEMENT

IMPORTANT DATES AND DEADLINES