PARIS (Reuters) -Vivendi won a court case on Wednesday against a group of institutional investors that sought 1 billion euros in damages, alleging the media giant made false statements during a merger deal two decades ago.
The Paris Commercial court rejected claims made by 90 investors, which had alleged Vivendi’s top executives at the time failed to fully disclose the extent of Vivendi’s debt as the group oversaw a $46 billion three-way tie-up with Seagram Co and Canal Plus two decades ago.
Vivendi’s boss at the time was Jean-Marie Messier.
“The court has considered that Vivendi’s financial information at the time was correct, as we have pleaded,” a lawyer for Vivendi told Reuters by email.
In a separate statement Vivendi said it was pleased with the decisions issued by the Paris commercial court, which it said were “consistent with those already handed down in France on this issue and on facts dating back some twenty years”
(1 = 0.8453 euro)
(Reporting by Mathieu Rosemain; additional reporting by Dominique Vidalon; Editing by GV De Clercq, Kirsten Donovan)
