Berman DeValerio clients won important rulings in two high-profile lawsuits, overcoming defendants' motion to dismiss a lawsuit against investment bank Bear Stearns and earning appointment as lead plaintiff in a case alleging fraud at energy giant BP.

In the Bears Stearns case, the judge's Jan. 19, 2011 decision allows plaintiffs to pursue securities fraud claims against the Bear Stearns Companies, former auditor Deloitte & Touche LLP and seven individual defendants. Plaintiffs and their lawyers will now begin gathering evidence and testimony for trial.

"The judge has ruled that our case is strong enough to warrant a full hearing on the merits," Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette said in a statement reacting to the news. "We are encouraged that the Court agrees that pensioners can pursue their legal rights when there is strong evidence, as there is here, of such a massive deception."

The State of Michigan is the court-appointed lead plaintiff in the lawsuit, which accuses the defendants of misleading the state's pension funds and other investors about Bear Stearns' risky exposure to the U.S. housing market and subsequent write-downs to its assets which led to a collapse of the company and its stock. Berman DeValerio is co-lead counsel.

The case is In re Bear Stearns Companies, Inc. Securities, Derivative, and ERISA Litigation. The judge's opinion is available here.

In the second case, a federal judge named four Ohio pension funds co-lead plaintiffs in a national class action against BP, along with the New York State Common Retirement Fund. Berman DeValerio represents the Ohio funds in the lawsuit, which named the London-based energy company, certain of its officers and directors, and BP America, Inc. as defendants.

The lawsuit stems from violations of federal securities laws. Specifically, the New York and Ohio funds allege that the defendants made false and misleading statements regarding BP's safety protocols, operations, and safety record, as well as the company's ability to respond to a major oil spill.

The truth about those false and misleading claims began to emerge after an explosion on BP's mobile offshore drilling unit, Deepwater Horizon, caused the rig to sink and oil to spill into the Gulf of Mexico leading to the largest oil spill in history. As the full impact of the spill became known, BP's stock fell approximately 40%, eliminating billions of dollars in the Company's total market capitalization value.

According to the court filings, the New York and Ohio funds estimated their combined losses as ranging from $181 million to $229.4 million, depending on the calculation methodology, on transactions between June 20, 2005 and June 1, 2010.

The case is In re BP, PLC Securities Litigation. The judge's lead plaintiff memorandum and order is available here.