Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP and Labaton Sucharow LLP Announce Proposed Class Action Settlement on Behalf of Purchasers of Acuity Brands, Inc. Common Stock - AYI

ATLANTA, Feb. 1, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check LLP and Labaton Sucharow LLP announce that the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division has approved the following announcement of a proposed class action settlement on behalf of purchasers of Acuity Brands, Inc. common stock (NYSE: AYI):

SUMMARY NOTICE OF (I) PENDENCY OF CLASS ACTION AND PROPOSED SETTLEMENT; (II) SETTLEMENT HEARING; AND
(III) MOTION FOR ATTORNEYS' FEES AND LITIGATION EXPENSES

TO:     All persons who purchased publicly traded common stock of Acuity Brands, Inc. ("Acuity") from October 7, 2015 to April 3, 2017, inclusive, and were damaged thereby ("Class"):

PLEASE READ THIS NOTICE CAREFULLY; YOUR RIGHTS
WILL BE AFFECTED BY 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 Northern District of Georgia ("Court"), that the above-captioned action ("Action") has been certified as a class action on behalf of the 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) Pendency of Class Action and Proposed Settlement; (II) Settlement Hearing; and (III) Motion for Attorneys' Fees and Litigation Expenses ("Notice").

YOU ARE ALSO NOTIFIED that Court-appointed Class Representative the Public Employees' Retirement System of Mississippi ("Class Representative"), on behalf of itself and the Court-certified Class, has reached a proposed settlement of the Action with defendants Acuity, Vernon J. Nagel, Richard K. Reece, and Mark A. Black (collectively, "Defendants") for $15,750,000 in cash ("Settlement"). If approved by the Court, the Settlement will resolve all claims in the Action.

A hearing ("Settlement Hearing") will be held on June 3, 2022 at 10:00 a.m., before the Honorable Mark H. Cohen, United States District Court Judge for the Northern District of Georgia, either in person at the Richard B. Russell Federal Building and United States Courthouse, 75 Ted Turner Drive, SW, Courtroom: 1905, Atlanta, GA 30303, or by video or telephonic conference as the Court may order, to determine, among other things: (i) whether the proposed Settlement on the terms and conditions provided for in the Stipulation and Agreement of Settlement dated December 2, 2021 ("Stipulation") is fair, reasonable, and adequate to the Class, and should be finally approved by the Court; (ii) whether the Action should be dismissed with prejudice against Defendants and the releases specified and described in the Stipulation (and in the Notice) should be granted; (iii) whether the proposed Plan of Allocation (as set forth in the Notice) should be approved as fair and reasonable; and (iv) whether Class Counsel's motion for attorneys' fees and Litigation Expenses should be approved. Any updates regarding the Settlement Hearing, including any changes to the date or time of the hearing or updates regarding in-person or remote appearances at the hearing, will be posted to the website for the Settlement, www.strategicclaims.net/acuity.

            If you are a member of the Class, your rights will be affected by the pending Action and the Settlement, and you may be entitled to share in the Settlement proceeds. If you have not yet received the full printed Notice and Claim Form in the mail, you may obtain copies of these documents by: (i) contacting the Claims Administrator at Acuity Brands, Inc. Securities Litigation, c/o Strategic Claims Services, 600 N. Jackson Street, Suite 205, Media, PA  19063, 1-866-274-4004, [email protected]; or (ii) downloading them from the website for the Settlement, www.strategicclaims.net/acuity, or from Class Counsel's websites www.ktmc.com and www.labaton.com.

To be eligible to receive a payment from the Settlement, you must be a member of the Class and submit a Claim Form postmarked (if mailed), or online via www.strategicclaims.net/acuity, no later than May 18, 2022, in accordance with the instructions set forth in the Claim Form. If you are a Class Member and do not submit a proper Claim Form, you will not be eligible to share in the Settlement proceeds, but you will nevertheless be bound by any judgments or orders entered by the Court in the Action.

If you are a member of the Class and wish to exclude yourself from the Class, you must submit a request for exclusion such that it is received no later than May 13, 2022, in accordance with the instructions set forth in the 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 and you will not receive any benefits from the Settlement.

Any objections to the proposed Settlement, the proposed Plan of Allocation, and/or Class Counsel's motion for attorneys' fees and Litigation Expenses, must be submitted to the Court and served on Class Counsel and Defendants' Counsel such that they are received no later than May 13, 2022, in accordance with the instructions set forth in the Notice.

PLEASE DO NOT CONTACT THE COURT, THE CLERK'S OFFICE, DEFENDANTS, OR DEFENDANTS' COUNSEL REGARDING THIS NOTICE. All questions about this notice, the Settlement, or your eligibility to participate in the Settlement should be directed to Class Counsel or the Claims Administrator.

Requests for the Notice and Claim Form should be made to the Claims Administrator:

Acuity Brands, Inc. Securities Litigation
c/o Strategic Claims Services
600 N. Jackson Street, Suite 205
Media, PA 19063
1-866-274-4004
[email protected]
www.strategicclaims.net/acuity

All other inquiries should be made to Class Counsel:

DATED:  FEBRUARY 1, 2022

BY ORDER OF THE COURT
United States District Court
Northern District of Georgia

SOURCE Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP; Labaton Sucharow LLP