Bhangal V. Hawaiian Electric Industries, Inc. Et Al
Summary: The federal securities class action lawsuit was initiated by Bhapinderpal S. Bhangal on August 24, 2023, against Hawaiian Electric Industries, Inc., along with several of its high-ranking officials, including past and present CEOs and CFOs. The plaintiff asserts that the defendants breached federal securities laws, specifically Sections 10(b) and 20(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5, by disseminating materially false and misleading information regarding the company's business, operations, and future prospects. The crux of the lawsuit is the allegation that Hawaiian Electric and its officials did not adequately disclose the insufficiency of its wildfire prevention and safety measures, thereby exposing Maui to an increased risk of catastrophic wildfires. This claim was precipitated by a series of intense wildfires in Hawaii in August 2023, which caused substantial damage and loss of life. The plaintiff contends that the inadequate safety measures of Hawaiian Electric exacerbated the severity of these wildfires. As a shareholder, the plaintiff alleges that they purchased Hawaiian Electric securities at artificially inflated prices during a specific period and incurred losses following the disclosure of alleged corrective information. The lawsuit further alleges that the defendants intentionally withheld detrimental facts from the public. The lawsuit draws on various company reports and statements, including its 2019 and 2020 Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) reports, as well as quarterly and annual reports submitted to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). These reports, certified by defendants Lau and Hazelton under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX), are alleged to have violated federal securities laws by falsely representing the company's efforts to bolster the resilience of its system, including plans for climate risk modeling, advanced metering, damage prediction modeling, and community microgrids. The lawsuit aims to recover damages for the substantial losses incurred by the plaintiff and other class members due to the depreciation in the market value of Hawaiian Electric's securities following the wildfires and the subsequent revelations about the company's deficient safety protocols.
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