Yet Another Blow to Consumers by the High Court

According to the Associated Press, the United States Supreme Court has once again sided with big business even in situations where deception is involved. The Court threw out a lawsuit filed by investors against Janus Capital Group who were seeking to hold the company liable for allegedly false statements in some Janus mutual fund documents. The court’s 5-4 ruling reversed an appeals court decision that allowed the lawsuit to go forward. The key issue is whether the adviser to a mutual fund can be held financially responsible for false statements in the fund’s prospectus. The court was ideologically divided. As expected, the five conservative justices said the case should be dismissed. Effectively, a mutual fund company can now put whatever lies they want in their sales materials and their advisers do not have to worry about the recourse.