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CASES

Shiva Y. Stein v. Symetra Financial Corporation, et al.

Superior Court of Washington in and for King County
Case No. 15-2-20458-1 SEA

Settlement 

On May 17, 2016, the Court entered the Order and Final Judgment granting final approval to the class action settlement. The settlement resulted in additional disclosures to shareholder regarding the proposed transaction, particularly with respect to the analyses supporting the fairness opinion of Symetra’s financial advisor, Morgan Stanley, including the key inputs and underlying assumptions.  In addition, Defendants disclosed additional information about the confidentiality agreements Symetra had with other potential acquirers and the customary standstill restrictions contained therein.

Case Overview

This shareholder action was filed in the Superior Court of Washington in and for King County. The Amended Class Action Complaint was filed on October 15, 2015. Plaintiff asserted claims on behalf of all record and beneficial owners of common stock of Symetra at any time during the period beginning on August 11, 2015, through February 1, 2016.

The Amended Complaint alleged that Symetra, its Board of Directors, Sumitomo Life Insurance Company, and SLIC Financial Corporation breached their fiduciary duties in connection with the proposed sale of Symetra to Sumitomo. Plaintiff alleged that the proposed merger terms were set up to favor Sumitomo at Symetra’s shareholders’ expense, by preventing other potential acquirers from making superior bids and by creating financial incentives for individual board members to approve the merger. In addition, Plaintiff alleged that Defendants failed to disclose material information about the proposed merger to Symetra shareholders, thereby preventing shareholders from making an informed vote on the merger.

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