A U.S. District Judge rejected BlackBerry Ltd’s bid to dismiss a long-running lawsuit alleging that the company misled shareholders by inflating the success and profitability of its BlackBerry 10 smartphones. The judge, Colleen McMahon also stated the class-action case will finally have its day in court this fall.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
McMahon said “genuine issues of material fact” in the eight-year-old case were still contentious, including Blackberry’s accounting, and that “battle-of-the-experts” issues prevented her from ruling for either side.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
While the BlackBerry 10 was hailed by critics, most consumers opted for Android-based smartphones and Apple Inc’s iPhone, leading to BlackBerry’s decision in 2016 to stop producing phones.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Shareholders accused the Canadian technology company, which currently specializes in cybersecurity, of failing to disclose BlackBerry 10’s true revenue prospects in public statements in 2013, leading to a surge in its share price.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
McMahon said that while criminal trials will be prioritized over civil trials in her Manhattan courthouse during the COVID-19 pandemic, she is keen to pay attention to the BlackBerry case because of its age.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The judge expects the trial to begin in September or October.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Defendants in the case include former Blackberry CEO Thorsten Heins, former Chief Financial Officer Brian Bidulka and former Chief Legal Officer Steve Zipperstein.<\/p>\n\n\n