US District Judge Approves OSG Settlement Deal

U.S. District judge Shira A. Scheindlin has given preliminary approval to a USD 16.25 million settlement between the investors in the New York-headquartered oil tanker operator Overseas Shipholding Group Inc (OSG) and the company’s executives, underwriters and an audit firm in relation to the 2012 bankruptcy and tax issues.

Earlier this week, OSG’s executives agreed to pay USD 10.5 million, the company’s underwriters, which include Goldman Sachs, Citigroup Inc, and Deutsche Bank, agreed to pay USD 4 million, and the auditor – PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP – is to pay USD 1.75 million.

The shareholders filed the lawsuit against OSG’s 21 executives not long before the company started bankruptcy proceedings on November 14, 2012. The shareholders claimed that the company’s executives made false and misleading statements related to the company’s operational status and financial forecasts.

This is the second settlement related to the bankruptcy case. OSG agreed to pay its investors at least USD 15 million in the first settlement.

In August 2014, OSG announced the completion of financial restructuring and emergence from Chapter 11. The company filed for initial public offering in May this year.

World Maritime News Staff