Christopher J. Gray Firm, Co-Counsel Obtain Class Certification in Natural Gas Futures Manipulation Case Against Hedge Fund Amaranth

September 30, 2010

The U.S. Distict Court for the Southern District of New York (Hon. Shira A. Scheindlin, U.S. District Judge) has granted the motion for class certification filed by plaintiffs including Roberto E. Calle Gracey (represented by Christopher J. Gray, P.C. and Louis F. Burke, P.C.) in a class action case alleging that now-defunct hedge fund Amaranth manipulated the prices of natural gas futures contracts during February through September 2006 (In re Amaranth Natural Gas Commodities Litig., No. 07-CV-6377 (SAS)). The class certification ruling permits traders who were net short New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX) natural gas futures contracts expiring during the summer of 2006 between February and September 2006 as well as traders who were net long NYMEX natural gas futures contracts expiring in December 2006, January 2007, February 2007 or March 2007 between February and September 2006 to prosecute their claims on a classwide basis.

In reaching its decision the Court rejected defendants’ arguments. including that the case’s class definition was too complex to permit the Court to determine who is a class member and that plaintiffs had not shown that they court prove that Amaranth had caused artificial prices in NYMEX futures on a classwide basis.

The Court’s decision is accessible below.

10.9.27 class certification order.pdf (2.42 mb)