Barrick Faces Lawsuit over Pascua-Lama

Reuters reported that Barrick Gold (TSX:ABX) will face a class action lawsuit that accuses it of concealing issues at its Pascua-Lama mine in South America. The miner lost a bid to dismiss the lawsuit this week.

As quoted in the publication:

U.S. District Judge Shira Scheindlin in Manhattan ruled on Wednesday that shareholders can pursue class action claims that Barrick intended to deceive them about environmental problems afflicting its Pascua-Lama project on the border of Argentina and Chile.

“Though plaintiffs have not alleged a motive, they have sufficiently alleged strong circumstantial evidence of conscious misbehavior or recklessness,” the judge wrote in a 55-page decision.

Scheindlin also said shareholders can pursue claims that Barrick misled them about its accounting for the project.

The judge dismissed claims alleging that Barrick intentionally misled them about costs and production delays.

She also dismissed claims related to transactions conducted on the Toronto Stock Exchange, saying a key U.S. securities fraud law does not reach that far.

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