AUSTIN, Texas, May 30, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Citizens, Inc.
(NYSE: CIA) today announced that the U.S. District Court for the
Western District of Texas has
dismissed with prejudice a previously disclosed securities class
action against the company and five current and former officers and
directors, captioned Juan Gamboa
v. Citizens, Inc. et al (Case No. 1:17-cv-00241-RP). The
dismissal affirms Citizens' position that it fully and accurately
disclosed all required information to its
stockholders.
Following an article published by short sellers disparaging
Citizens' business, certain Citizens stockholders filed suit
alleging that certain statements by the company, including
statements involving the voluntary disclosure of an adverse tax
issue in the company's SEC filings, were materially false and
misleading and that the company failed to disclose material adverse
facts about its business, operations and prospects.
The court noted that while it agreed with several of the
arguments set forth by Citizens for dismissal, it only needed to
focus on one—scienter—to dispose of the motion and dismiss the
case. The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995
"requires allegations that the defendant acted with 'an intent to
deceive, manipulate [or] defraud,' or 'with severe
recklessness.'" Here, "every one of Citizens' allegedly
misleading statements was reviewed by independent outside
auditors," no officer or director was alleged to have sold stock or
otherwise profited from the alleged misrepresentations and, as the
court explained, it was clear that the problems with plaintiffs'
case could not be cured by amendment. Further, the court
stated there "is evidence supporting the inference that Citizens
was not acting with an intent to defraud or mislead, but rather
that they had reason to believe the disclosures were
adequate."
In response to the Final Judgment and Order of Dismissal issued
by the court, Geoff Kolander,
President and Chief Executive Officer of Citizens said, "You reach
a point in life where you do the absolute best you can, and then
you turn it over to God. The court's decision is an answered
prayer for our executive team and a victory for our
stockholders. We strive to ensure the disclosures for our
investors are timely and accurate. This decision
validates many hours of hard work by our executive team and our
outside legal counsel in preparing our disclosures during a
difficult season for the Company." In conclusion, Mr.
Kolander emphasized, "Today is another positive step forward for
Citizens, its new executive team and its Board of Directors."
The global law firm Norton Rose Fulbright represented Citizens
in this matter. The Norton Rose Fulbright team included
Gerry Pecht, Mark Oakes, Peter
Stokes, and Lana Rowenko.
About Citizens, Inc.
Citizens, Inc. is a financial services company listed on the New
York Stock Exchange under the symbol CIA. The Company utilizes a
three-pronged strategy for growth based upon worldwide sales of
U.S. Dollar-denominated whole life cash value insurance policies,
life insurance product sales in the U.S. and the acquisition of
other U.S.-based life insurance companies.
Information herein contains forward-looking statements within
the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of
1995, which can be identified by words such as "may," "will,"
"expect," "anticipate", "intends," "continue" or comparable
words. In addition, all statements other than statements of
historical facts that address activities that the Company expects
or anticipates will or may occur in the future are forward-looking
statements. Readers are encouraged to read the SEC reports of
the Company, particularly its Annual Report on Form 10-K for the
fiscal year ended December 31, 2017,
its quarterly reports on Form 10-Q and its current reports on Form
8-K, for "Risk Factors" and other meaningful cautionary language
disclosing why actual results may vary materially from those
expected or implied by the forward-looking statements. The
Company undertakes no duty or obligation to update any
forward-looking statements contained in this release as a result of
new information, future events or changes in the Company's
expectations. Accordingly, you should not unduly rely on
these forward-looking statements. The Company also disclaims
any duty to comment upon or correct information that may be
contained in reports published by the investment community.
For further information contact:
Investor
Relations
PR@citizensinc.com
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SOURCE Citizens, Inc.