[BonzoHansen]

I think the legal question is did Toyota withhold material information and thus mislead shareholders. This is hard to prove. That is what NY’s Cuomo and company are trying to pin on BoA related to the Merrill purchase. They argue the bank failed to tell investors about Merrill bonuses and much higher then expected losses just prior to the shareholder vote to approve the buyout. BoA is arguing that is was not material (and they were pushed by the government). I think an agreement to some of the suits was recently reached. Here the argument will be Toyota hid the fact they knew they had billions in potential liabilities and reputational damage and said nothing. I’m not sure how that will go, probably a settlement of some sort. Which is why they file.

I do not think old GM did that. The numbers in their annual reports are what they are, with never ending negative cash flows. Anyone who looked at the numbers knew that. Every analyst report I looked at talked about it. There was no underlying issue that was never publically documented. They outlined their turnaround plan and an investor could choose to believe it or not. But that plan did not forecast a historic drop in auto sales, the proverbial last nail in the coffin. But the info is there, I know of no intention misleading of investors. Poor management itself is not a crime, nor is a drop in share value. Shareholders do elect BOD members who pick management. So they can sue themselves.

Now stop picking on Al.