Yi Xiang v. Inovalon Holdings, Inc.

254 F. Supp. 3d 635, 2017 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 78207
CourtDistrict Court, S.D. New York
DecidedMay 23, 2017
Docket16-CV-4923 (VM)
StatusPublished
Cited by10 cases

This text of 254 F. Supp. 3d 635 (Yi Xiang v. Inovalon Holdings, Inc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, S.D. New York primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Yi Xiang v. Inovalon Holdings, Inc., 254 F. Supp. 3d 635, 2017 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 78207 (S.D.N.Y. 2017).

Opinion

DECISION AND ORDER

VICTOR MARRERO, United States District Judge.

Lead Plaintiff Roofers Local No. 149 Pension Fund (“Lead Plaintiff’), individually and on behalf of all others similarly situated, filed a complaint (“Consolidated Complaint,” Dkt. No. 66) against sixteen defendants: Inovalon Holdings, Inc. (“Ino-valon”); six of Inovalon’s officers and directors, Keith R. Dunleavy, Thomas R. Kloster, Denise K. Fletcher, Andre S. Hoffmann, Lee D. Roberts, and William J. Teuber Jr. (collectively, “Individual Defendants”); and nine financial services companies that acted as underwriters for Ino-valon’s Initial Public Offering (“IPO”): Goldman Sachs & Co., Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC, Citigroup Global Markets Inc., Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith, Incorporated, UBS Securities LLC, Piper Jaffray & Co., Robert W. Baird & Co. Incorporated, Wells Fargo Securities, LLC, and William Blair & Company, L.L.C. (collectively, “Underwriter Defendants,” together with Inovalon and the Individual Defendants, “Defendants”).

On March 3, 2017, the Defendants submitted correspondence to the Court regarding certain alleged deficiencies in the Consolidated Complaint and sought leave to move to dismiss the Consolidated Complaint. (Dkt. No. 68.) The Court now construes this correspondence as a Motion to Dismiss the Consolidated Complaint (“Motion”). For the reasons stated below, the Motion is DENIED in part and GRANTED in part.

I. BACKGROUND

Plaintiff Yi Xiang originally filed a complaint in this action on June 24, 2016. (Dkt. No. 1.) After this case was consolidated with a related case, Patel et. al. v. Inovalon Holdings, Inc. et. al., No. 16-cv-5065, Roofers Local No. 149 Pension Fund was appointed Lead Plaintiff for the Class, and class counsel was appointed. (See Dkt. Nos. 36, 63.) Lead Plaintiff then promptly filed the Consolidated Complaint. The Consolidated Complaint alleges that Ino-valon negligently included untrue statements, of material fact and omitted material facts from the Registration Statement and Prospectus (collectively, the “Registration”) issued in connection with Inovalon’s IPO. Specifically, the Consolidated Complaint alleges that Defendants' failed to disclose that Inovalon derived significant revenues from New York-based customers, and that Inovalon would be subject to substantially increased taxes in New York State and New York City, resulting in a material increase in its effective tax rate and a significant decrease in Inovalon’s earnings. Lead Plaintiff asserts three causes of action: (1) violation of Section 11 of the Securities Act of 1933 (the “Securities Act”) against all Defendants; (2) violation of Section 12(a)(2) of the Securities Act against all defendants; and (3) violation of Section 15 of the Securities Act against Inovalon and the Individual Defendants. Lead Plaintiff seeks damages, attorneys’ fees and costs, rescission or rescisso-ry damages, and other equitable relief.

Shortly after filing of the Consolidated Complaint, Defendants sought permission to move to dismiss it. (See Motion.) The Motion attached a February 21, 2017 letter from Defendants to Lead Plaintiff regarding the contemplated Motion (“February 21 Letter”), a February 28, 2017 letter from Lead Plaintiff to Defendants opposing the Motion (“February 28 Letter”) and [640]*640a March 3, 2017 letter from Defendants to the Court. (See id.) Defendants argue in the February 21 Letter that the Consolidated Complaint is deficient and should be dismissed because: (1) the claims are time-barred as the action was filed more than one year after Lead Plaintiff should reasonably have discovered the alleged untrue statements and omissions; (2) Lead Plaintiff fails to allege a material misstatement or omission that was required to be disclosed; (3) the Consolidated Complaint should be dismissed for negative causation; (4) Lead Plaintiff does not have standing to assert a claim pursuant to Section 12(a)(2) of the Securities Act against the Individual Defendants or Underwriter Defendants because neither the Individual nor the Underwriter Defendants are “statutory sellers”; and (5) with regards to the Section 15 Securities Act claim, Lead Plaintiff fails to allege a primary Securities Act violation. (See id.)

Lead Plaintiff opposes the Motion and argues in its February 28 Letter that the Consolidated Complaint is sufficient at this stage because: (1) the claims are not time-barred because Lead Plaintiff did not have all the facts necessary to plead the elements of the claims until August 2015, when Inovalon disclosed the severe impact of the increased state tax liability on its earnings and Inovalon’s share price dropped 30 percent; (2) the Consolidated Complaint alleges that the Registration misstated the tax by over 10 percent and further, upon disclosure, the price of Ino-valon stock dropped by 30 percent, constituting a material misrepresentation; (3) negative causation, which is a complex question of fact, cannot be established on the pleadings; (4) the Consolidated Complaint sufficiently pleads each Defendant’s status as a statutory seller; and (5) the Section 15 claims are sufficiently plead.

II. DISCUSSION

A. Statute of Limitations

“Although the statute of limitations is ordinarily an affirmative defense that must be raised in the answer, a statute of limitations defense may be decided on a Rule 12(b)(6) motion if the defense appears on the face of the complaint.” Ellul v. Congregation of Christian Bros., 774 F.3d 791, 798 n.12 (2d Cir. 2014). Securities Act claims must be “brought within one year after the discovery of the untrue statement or the omission, or after such discovery should have been made by the exercise of reasonable diligence.” 15 U.S.C. Section 77m; see also Merck & Co. v. Reynolds, 559 U.S. 633, 656, 130 S.Ct. 1784, 176 L.Ed.2d 582 (2010) (Stevens, J., concurring in part and concurring in the judgment) (establishing the one-year statute of limitations for Securities Act claims). Although the Second Circuit has left the question open regarding whether the “inquiry notice” or “discovery rule” applies, In re Magnum Hunter Res. Corp. Sec. Litig., 616 Fed.Appx. 442, 447 (2d Cir. 2015), “[t]he majority of courts in this district” have maintained that inquiry notice applies to Section 11 claims. See e.g., Youngers v. Virtus Inv. Partners Inc., 195 F.Supp.3d 499, 520 (S.D.N.Y. 2016); Pennsylvania Pub. Sch. Employees’ Ret. Sys. v. Bank of Am. Corp., 874 F.Supp.2d 341, 364 (S.D.N.Y. 2012). The Second Circuit has stated that a “reasonably diligent plaintiff has not ‘discovered’ one of the facts constituting a securities fraud violation until he can plead that fact with sufficient detail and particularity to survive a 12(b)(6) motion to dismiss.” City of Pontiac Gen. Employees’ Ret. Sys. v. MBIA, Inc., 637 F.3d 169, 175 (2d Cir. 2011).

In order for the statute of limitations to begin running, disclosures do not have to “perfectly match the allegations that a plaintiff chooses to include in its [641]*641complaint.” In re Magnum Hunter Res. Corp. Sec. Litig., 26 F.Supp.3d 278, 302 (S.D.N.Y. 2014), aff'd, 616 Fed.Appx. 442 (2d Cir. 2015).

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254 F. Supp. 3d 635, 2017 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 78207, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/yi-xiang-v-inovalon-holdings-inc-nysd-2017.