A ruling in the federal appeals court in New Orleans revived Texas state court fraud cases targeting Enron Corp’s former leaders and more than a dozen financial institutions accused of playing a role in the company’s collapse. The ruling by the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, which reverses an earlier federal court decision, allows cases to proceed against individuals and institutions who have not yet reached a settlement. In late 2001, the Houston law firm of Fleming & Associates filed seven securities-related lawsuits in Texas state courts on behalf of several hundred clients against various Enron-related Defendants. The federal court, which already had jurisdiction over various Enron-related cases, then issued an order prohibiting the law firm from filing any new Enron-related actions without leave of the court. In 2005, leave to file lawsuits against Enron-related Defendants for fraud in Texas courts was denied by the federal court. Under the appeals court ruling, the cases can now proceed in the lower court.

Source: Reuters

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