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Merck & Co., Inc. v. Reynolds

Docket No. Op. Below Argument Opinion Vote Author Term
08-905 3rd Cir. Nov 30, 2009
Apr 27, 2010 9-0 Breyer OT 2009

Holding: The time for a plaintiff to file a federal securities fraud lawsuit begins to run as soon as a plaintiff discovers (or should have discovered) the facts showing a violation of the Securities Exchange Act. A false statement affecting stock prices is not enough to violate the securities law; the defendant must know that the statement was false. As a result, the time to sue does not start to run simply because the plaintiff knows that the statement is false; the time runs only once the plaintiff discovers that the defendant knew that the statement was false.

Judgment: Affirmed, 9-0, in an opinion by Justice Stephen Breyer on April 27, 2010. Justice Stevens filed an opinion concurring in part and concurring in the judgment. Justice Scalia filed a second opinion concurring in part and concurring in the judgment, in which Justice Thomas joined.

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