Bernstein Litowitz Berger & Grossmann LLP Announces Class Action Settlement Involving Publicly Traded GT Advanced Technologies Inc. Securities

CONCORD, N.H., April 13, 2020 /PRNewswire/ --

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
DISTRICT OF NEW HAMPSHIRE

SUMMARY NOTICE OF (I) CERTIFICATION OF CLASS; (II) PROPOSED SETTLEMENT WITH APPLE INC.; (III) MOTION FOR AN AWARD OF ATTORNEYS' FEES AND REIMBURSEMENT OF LITIGATION EXPENSES;
AND (IV) SETTLEMENT FAIRNESS HEARING

TO:     All persons and entities who or which from November 5, 2013 through 9:40 a.m. Eastern Standard Time on October 6, 2014, inclusive, purchased or otherwise acquired publicly traded GT Advanced Technologies Inc. ("GTAT") common stock and/or publicly traded GTAT 3.00% Convertible Senior Notes Due 2020, purchased or otherwise acquired publicly traded call options on GTAT common stock, and/or sold (wrote) publicly traded put options on GTAT common stock, and were damaged thereby (the "Apple Class" or "Class"):

PLEASE READ THIS NOTICE CAREFULLY; YOUR RIGHTS MAY BE AFFECTED BY THE SETTLEMENT OF A CLASS ACTION LAWSUIT PENDING IN THIS COURT.

YOU ARE HEREBY NOTIFIED, pursuant to Rule 23 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and an Order of the United States District Court for the District of New Hampshire, that the above-captioned action (the "Action") has been certified as a class action with respect to claims asserted against defendant Apple Inc. ("Apple") on behalf of the Apple Class, except for certain persons and entities who are excluded from the Class by definition as set forth in the full printed Notice of (I) Certification of Class; (II) Proposed Settlement with Apple Inc.; (III) Motion for an Award of Attorneys' Fees and Reimbursement of Litigation Expenses; and (IV) Settlement Fairness Hearing (the "Apple Settlement Notice").

YOU ARE ALSO NOTIFIED that the Class Representatives, Douglas Kurz and Palisade Strategic Master Fund (Cayman) Limited, have reached a proposed settlement with Apple for $3,500,000 in cash (the "Apple Settlement"), that, if approved, will resolve all claims asserted against Apple in the Action.  The currently proposed Apple Settlement is in addition to two other partial settlements previously approved by the Court, resulting in an aggregate recovery of $40,200,000 in cash.¹  The Apple Settlement, if approved, will resolve all claims in the Action against Apple.  The claims asserted against Apple are the only remaining claims in the Action and, thus, if the Apple Settlement is approved, the Action will be completely resolved.

The Settlement Fairness Hearing will be held on Monday, June 15, 2020 at 10:00 a.m., before the Honorable Joseph N. Laplante at the United States District Court for the District of New Hampshire, Courtroom 2 of the Warren B. Rudman United States Courthouse, 55 Pleasant Street, Concord, NH 03301-3941.  In response to the recent outbreak of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19), the United States District Court for the District of New Hampshire has issued a Standing Order directing that the Settlement Fairness Hearing be conducted by teleconference or videoconference.  Any Class Member wishing to access the Settlement Fairness Hearing may contact the Clerk's Office at 603-225-1423 in advance of the hearing to obtain the access information for the teleconference/videoconference.  Also, instructions for joining the teleconference/videoconference will be posted to the website maintained by the Claims Administrator, www.GTATSecuritiesLitigation.com, and Class Counsel's website, www.blbglaw.com.  Please note that Judge Laplante has the discretion to postpone the Settlement Fairness Hearing and/or reschedule the Settlement Fairness Hearing for an in-court hearing at the Rudman Courthouse, without further written notice to the Class.  Any updates regarding the Settlement Fairness Hearing, including any changes to the date or time of the hearing or updates regarding in-person appearances at the hearing, will be posted to the website maintained by the Claims Administrator, www.GTATSecuritiesLitigation.com, and Class Counsel's website, www.blbglaw.com.  Also, the Court reserves the right to approve the Settlement and Class Counsel's motion for an award of attorneys' fees and Litigation Expenses, and/or any other related matter, at or after the Settlement Fairness Hearing, without further notice to Class Members.

If you are a member of the Apple Class, your rights will be affected by the proposed Apple Settlement and any orders or judgments related to the Apple Settlement, and you may be entitled to share in the Settlement Fund.  If you have not yet received the Apple Settlement Notice, you may obtain a copy by contacting the Claims Administrator at GTAT Securities Litigation, c/o Claims Administrator, P.O. Box 10463, Dublin, OH 43017-4063, by toll-free phone at 1-866-562-8790, or by email at [email protected].  The Plan of Allocation that was approved by the Court in connection with the Earlier Settlements will be applied to the proposed Apple Settlement.  Copies of the Plan of Allocation and of the Proof of Claim Form ("Claim Form") were mailed to potential class members in conjunction with the notice of the Earlier Settlements disseminated beginning in March 2018 (the "March 2018 Settlement Notice").  Copies of the March 2018 Settlement Notice (including the Plan of Allocation attached as Appendix A) and the Claim Form are available at www.GTATSecuritiesLitigation.com. 

If you are a member of the Apple Class, and previously submitted a valid Claim Form in connection with the Earlier Settlements in the Action, do not do so again.  Unless you properly exclude yourself from the Apple Class, your earlier Claim Form will be considered for participation in the Apple Settlement.  If you are a Class Member and did NOT submit a valid Claim Form in connection with the Earlier Settlements, in order to be eligible to share in the distribution of the Net Settlement Fund (as defined in the Apple Settlement Notice) you must submit a Claim Form postmarked no later than June 29, 2020.  If you are a member of the Apple Class and have not previously submitted a valid Claim Form and do not now submit a valid Claim Form postmarked on or before June 29, 2020, you will not be eligible to share in the proceeds of the Apple Settlement but you will nevertheless bound by any judgments or orders entered by the Court in the Action relating to the Apple Settlement.  If you require a Claim Form, it may be obtained from the Claims Administrator or you can download a copy from the website noted above.

If you are a member of the Apple Class and wish to exclude yourself from the Class, you must submit a written request for exclusion such that it is received no later than May 25, 2020, in accordance with the instructions set forth in the Apple Settlement Notice.  If you properly exclude yourself from the Class, you will not be bound by any judgments or orders entered by the Court in the Action relating to the Apple Settlement, and you will not be eligible to share in the proceeds of the Apple Settlement.

Any objections to the proposed Apple Settlement or Class Counsel's motion for attorneys' fees and reimbursement of Litigation Expenses must be filed with the Court and delivered to Class Counsel and Apple's Counsel such that they are received no later than May 25, 2020, in accordance with the instructions set forth in the Apple Settlement Notice.

Please do not contact the Court, GTAT, Apple, any other Defendant, or their counsel regarding this notice.  All questions about this notice, the proposed Apple Settlement, or your eligibility to participate in the Apple Settlement should be directed to the Claims Administrator or Class Counsel.

Requests for the Apple Settlement Notice should be made to:

GTAT Securities Litigation
c/o Claims Administrator
P.O. Box 10463
Dublin, OH 43017-4063
1-866-562-8790
[email protected]
www.GTATSecuritiesLitigation.com

Inquiries, other than requests for Apple Settlement Notice,
should be made to Class Counsel:

Lauren A. Ormsbee, Esq.
BERNSTEIN LITOWITZ BERGER & GROSSMANN LLP
1251 Avenue of the Americas, 44th Floor
New York, NY 10020
1-800-380-8496
[email protected]

By Order of the Court

¹ Those earlier achieved settlements were: (i) the settlement with the Individual Defendants, on behalf of the Individual Defendant Settlement Class, for $27,000,000 in cash (the "Individual Defendant Settlement"); and (ii) the settlement with the Underwriter Defendants, on behalf of the Underwriter Defendant Settlement Class, for $9,700,000 in cash (the "Underwriter Defendant Settlement," and together with the Individual Defendant Settlement, the "Earlier Settlements").  The Earlier Settlements were approved by the Court on July 27, 2018.  Notice of the Earlier Settlements was disseminated to potential members of the respective settlement classes beginning in March 2018.

SOURCE Bernstein Litowitz Berger & Grossmann LLP

Related Links

www.GTATSecuritiesLitigation.com