NEW YORK, Aug. 20, 2008 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Securities Law Firm of Klayman & Toskes, P.A. (http://www.nasd-law.com) said today that despite recent news that several Wall Street brokerage firms have agreed to settle claims with the regulators and buy back billions of dollars worth of auction rate securities from their customers, institutional investors may not be included in these settlements and are left searching for relief. A close reading of the settlements announced by Citigroup (NYSE:C - News), UBS (NYSE:UBS - News), Wachovia (NYSE:WB - News), JPMorgan Chase (NYSE:JPM - News), Merrill Lynch (NYSE:MER - News) and Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - News) regarding auction rate securities reveals that there are no requirements that these brokerage firms repurchase auction rate securities from their institutional clients. Brokerage firms most likely are taking a hard-line position against institutional investors because they believe: 1) that auction rate securities were suitable for all institutional investors, 2) that institutional investors do not need immediate liquidity, and 3) that institutional investors knew all of the risks associated with purchasing auction rate securities before they bought them. However, this is not the case for many institutional investors that Klayman & Toskes has spoken with.

Further, while some settlement agreements, like Citigroup's and Morgan Stanley's, state that they will use ``best efforts'' to liquidate auction rate securities held by institutional customers, it's anyone's guess as to when ``best efforts'' will result in these firms actually buying back auction rate securities from their institutional customers. If the brokerage firms drag out their ``best efforts'' well into 2009 or 2010 and liquidations do not materialize, many institutional investors who decide to ``wait and see'' and not sue their brokerage firm may find that some of their claims have become time-barred under state and federal statutes of limitations.

According to Attorney Lawrence Klayman of Klayman & Toskes, ``Wall Street's treatment of its institutional clients is inherently unfair. Institutional investors have the same rights that retail customers have, and they should be reimbursed for their auction rate securities as well.'' In April of 2008, FINRA issued Regulatory Notice 08-21 which discusses the redemption of auction rate securities. In the Notice, FINRA reminded member firms that when redeeming auction rate securities among their customers, ``they must adopt procedures that are reasonably designed to treat customers fairly and impartially, and must put their customers' interests ahead of their own.'' Additionally, NASD Rule 2110 requires firms to observe high standards of commercial honor and just and equitable principles of trade when conducting business with their customers. In that regard, Wall Street brokerage firms should not show partiality to their retail customers, while denying the rights of their institutional customers.

The attorneys at the Law Firm of Klayman & Toskes are dedicated to aggressively pursuing claims on behalf of institutional investors who purchased auction rate securities from Wall Street brokerage firms. Klayman & Toskes, an experienced, qualified and nationally recognized securities litigation law firm, practices exclusively in the field of securities arbitration and litigation. It continues its representation of investors throughout the world in securities arbitration and litigation matters against major Wall Street brokerage firms. If you wish to discuss this announcement or have information relevant to our claims, please contact Steven D. Toskes, Esquire or Jahan K. Manasseh, Esquire of Klayman & Toskes, P.A., at 888-997-9956, or visit us on the web at http://www.nasd-law.com.

          Klayman & Toskes, P.A.
          Steven D. Toskes, Esquire
          Jahan K. Manasseh, Esquire
          888-997-9956
          www.nasd-law.com