-->Duke Energy Says It Prevails in Two Suits
1/2/2003 6:18:00 PM

CHARLOTTE, N.C., Jan 02, 2003 (AP Online via COMTEX) -- Duke Energy Corp. said Thursday it had prevailed in legal claims brought against its energy-trading business by shareholders and by ExxonMobil Corp., its partner in a trading venture.

Last week, U.S. District Court Judge Jed Rakoff in New York dismissed 13 shareholder lawsuits that accused Charlotte-based Duke Energy of illegally using bogus trades to overstate revenue, the energy company said.

"We are gratified that the judge has ordered the dismissal of the cases in all respects," said Rick Priory, Duke Energy's chairman and chief executive."The increased number of class action lawsuits is clearly a sign of the times, and it is up to the courts to evaluate each case. We defended ourselves vigorously and obviously are pleased with the court's ruling."

Also in late December, an arbitration panel ruled for Duke in its dispute with ExxonMobil Corp., saying the oil company was not entitled to recover damages in a dispute over Duke's operation of Duke Energy Marketing and Trading, which is 60 percent owned by Duke and 40 percent by ExxonMobil, Duke Energy said.

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