Judge Dismisses Apple Backdating Lawsuit

A suit filed by the New York City Employees' Retirement System against Apple was dismissed Wednesday. The judge hearing the case said that there was no "discernible drop" in the stock price as a result of the backdating scandal.

According to Bloomberg News (as reported in the Los Angeles Times), U.S. District Judge Jeremy Fogel left open the possibility that plaintiffs in the case could refile a "derivative suit" arguing that the alleged violations hurt the company. But their complaint that the backdating scandal hurt Apple was baseless, he said.

Apple said in 2006 that stock options granted between 1997 and 2002 were backdated. The scandal ultimately led to the departure of long-time Apple CFO Fred Anderson, and resulted in charges being filed against former Apple general counsel Nancy Heinen. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is pursuing action against Heinen for violating antifraud law.

The New York City Employees' Retirement System is a pension fund that holds about 1 million shares of Apple stock. The group was named lead plaintiff in the case, which was filed earlier this year.