Shepherd, Finkelman, Miller & Shah, LLC Files Securities Class Action Lawsuit on Behalf of Purchasers of Corporate Backed Trust Certificates, Verizon New York Debenture-Backed Series 2004-1 HARTFORD, Conn., June 18 /PRNewswire/ -- Shepherd, Finkelman, Miller & Shah, LLC (http://www.classactioncounsel.com/; e-mail: ), announces that it has filed a class action lawsuit on behalf of all purchasers of on behalf of all purchasers of Corporate Backed Trust Certificates, Verizon New York Debenture-Backed Series 2004-1 ("Certificates") between January 5, 2004 and May 11, 2004 inclusive (the "Class Period"). The suit is brought against Lehman ABS Corp. (NYSE: CCG), U.S. Bank Trust National Association, Corporate Backed Trust Certificates Verizon New York Debenture Backed Series 2004-1 Trust (NYSE: JZG), Lehman Brothers, Inc. (LEH), RBC Dain Rauscher and Banc of America Securities LLC, a subsidiary of Bank of America Corp. (NYSE:BAC). The class action lawsuit is pending in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York (Civil Action No. 04-04571). A copy of the Complaint filed in this action can be obtained from the Court or you can call our offices toll free at either 866/540-5505 or 877/891- 9880 to speak with an attorney regarding this matter and we will send you a copy of the Complaint. In addition, if you would like to discuss this action or have any question regarding this notice or your rights, please telephone or e-mail James E. Miller, Esquire (866/540-5505; ) or James C. Shah, Esquire (877/891-9880; ). The Complaint alleges that certain of the Defendants violated Sections 11 and 15 of the Securities Act of 1933 and that other Defendants violated Section 12(a)(2) of the Securities Act of 1933. Specifically, the Complaint alleges that in January 2004, pursuant to a trust agreement between Lehman ABS Corp and U.S. Bank Trust, N.A., Lehman ABS Corp. transferred over $150 million in the aggregate principal amount of 7 3/8% Debentures, Series B, which were due in 2032 (the "Debentures") and which Debentures were issued by Verizon New York, Inc., a subsidiary of Verizon Communications, Inc. (NYSE:VZ) to the Corporate Backed Trust Certificates, Verizon New York Debenture-Backed Series 2004-1 Trust (the "Trust"), which issued the Certificates at issue. Over $50 million of additional Debentures were issued later in January, 2004. Pursuant to Prospectus Supplements dated in January 2004, over 8 million Certificates were offered to the investing public at a price of $25 per Certificate. On May 7, 2004, Lehman ABS Corp. announced that, on May 4, 2004, Verizon had filed a Form 15 with the SEC pursuant to which it had elected to suspend its duty to file periodic reports under certain sections of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and that, pursuant to the terms of the Trust, it would be terminated. This announcement triggered an "event of default" which automatically triggered the sale of the Debentures. On May 11, 2004, the Trustee announced that the sole assets of the Trust, over $200 million in the principal amount of the Debentures would be liquidated. On May 11, 2004, the last day of trading, the Certificates closed at $22.00. Notice was sent to holders of the Certificates informing them that they could receive liquidation proceeds under the Trust Agreement or their pro rata portion of the underlying securities of the Trust. Investors were informed that this election must be made by May 24, 2004 at 3:00 p.m. if they wanted to receive the securities. Otherwise, the Debentures would be sold at the market price beginning on May 25, 2004 and the sales would be completed by May 27, 2004. The Complaint alleges that the Prospectus was materially misleading because it omitted to state material information that defendants had an obligation to disclose. Specifically, Verizon New York was 1 of 16 domestic operating company owned by Verizon Communications that filed reports with the SEC. While the Prospectus generally described Verizon New York's failure to continue as an SEC filer as one of the potential events of default, it failed to disclose that, as of February 2003, Verizon Communications had already deregistered the public indebtedness of six of its domestic operating telephone companies (GTE Southwest Inc., Verizon Delaware Inc., Verizon Hawaii Inc., Verizon Northwest Inc., Verizon Washington DC Inc. and Verizon West Virginia Inc.), and that those deregistrations were made pursuant to a program established in early 2003 to change funding procedures and reduce costs, which plan included possible deregistration of domestic operating telephone companies with public indebtedness, including Verizon New York. The Complaint asserts that this information was exceptionally material to an investor's decision as to whether to purchase the Certificates. The Complaint also alleges that Defendants failed to conduct a reasonable investigation with respect to the events of default detailed in the Prospectus. The potential for triggering events of a default are key to the valuation of any debentures. Had defendants conducted a reasonable investigation, they would have discovered Verizon Communication's plan to reduce its indebtedness, which included the deregistration of some or all of its domestic operating companies. Plaintiff seeks to recover damages on behalf of all those who purchased or otherwise acquired Certificates during the Class Period (i.e., between January 5, 2004 and May 11, 2004 inclusive). If you purchased or otherwise acquired Certificates during the Class Period, and either lost money on the transaction or still hold the securities, you may wish to join in the action to serve as lead plaintiff. If you purchased Certificates during the Class Period, you may, no later than August 2, 2004 request that the Court appoint you as lead plaintiff. If you would like to discuss this action or have any question regarding this notice or your rights, please contact us at the telephone or electronic mail addresses provided. Shepherd, Finkelman, Miller & Shah, LLC (http://www.classactioncounsel.com/) is a national law firm that represents investors, including institutions and individuals, as well as consumers in class action and other complex litigation, and maintains offices in Connecticut, Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Florida. The firm's attorneys have appeared in matters on behalf of our clients throughout the United States and been appointed lead counsel in a number of class action and corporate governance matters. Shepherd, Finkelman, Miller & Shah, LLC issues this press release in compliance with the requirements of applicable federal securities laws. DATASOURCE: Shepherd, Finkelman, Miller & Shah, LLC CONTACT: James E. Miller of Shepherd, Finkelman, Miller & Shah, LLC, +1-866-540-5505, Web site: http://www.classactioncounsel.com/

Copyright