Plaintiffs’ counsel’s misreading of a news article on which his clients largely based a securities class action (now dismissed) may lead to significant sanctions for the lawyers and firms involved. In In re Austl. & N.Z. Banking Group Ltd. Sec. Litig., the plaintiffs alleged that numerous statements by defendants during the class period of March 2, 2007 to July 27, 2008 were misleading. In a ruling concerning sanctions, The court found that the core allegation in support of this claim was stated in Paragraph 25 of the Original Complaint:
