We have expressed our distaste and contempt for shareholders who rush to the American courts whenever something goes wrong with one of their investments – and the lawyers who encourage them, and the Activision settlement seems to leave open clear grounds for complaint on the part of all shareholders not covered by the class action: they will see their equity in the company diluted by the stock it plans to issue, and have grounds to argue that if Activision really believed the suit was without merit, it should have pursued it through the courts on their behalf; on the other hand, if the company is seen to be an innocent victim, the most effective course of action by shareholders not party to the suit would be for them now to initiate their own class action against the Activisions holders who initiated the suit that damaged their interest – a few successful class action countersuits would go a long way to dampening the ardour of those who reach for their lawyer at the first sign of an investment going wrong.
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