The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that a mutual fund investment adviser cannot be held liable in a private action under Exchange Act Rule 10b-5 for false statements included in its client mutual funds’ prospectuses. The investment adviser did not make the material misstatements in the prospectuses, said the court, in a 5-4 opinion, and could not be held liable for any misstatements.

For purposes of Rule 10b-5, said Justice Thomas, the maker of a statement is the person or entity with ultimate authority over the statement, including its content and whether and how to communicate it. Without control, a person or entity can merely suggest what to say, not "make" a statement in its own right. One who prepares or publishes a statement on behalf of another is not its maker. And in the ordinary case, attribution within a statement or implicit from surrounding circumstances is strong evidence that a statement was made by, and only by, the party to whom it is attributed.

This rule follows from Central Bank of Denver, N.A. v. First Interstate Bank of Denver, N.A, (1993-1994 CCH Dec. ¶98,178), in which the court held that Rule 10b-5’s private right of action does not include suits against aiders and abettors. Such suits, against entities that contribute substantial assistance to the making of a statement but do not actually make it, may be brought by the SEC, but not by private parties. A broader reading of "make," including persons or entities without ultimate control over the content of a statement, would substantially undermine Central Bank, said the court. If persons or entities without control over the content of a statement could be considered primary violators who "made" the statement, then aiders and abettors would be almost nonexistent.

The court rejected the contention that both the adviser and the fund might have made the misleading statements within the meaning of Rule 10b-5 because the adviser was significantly involved in preparing the prospectuses. But this assistance, subject to the ultimate control of the fund, does not mean that the adviser "made" any statements in the prospectuses. Further, that the adviser provided access to the fund’s prospectuses on its web site is also not a basis for liability. Merely hosting a document on a web site does not indicate that the hosting entity adopts the document as its own statement or exercises control over its content.

□ Janus Capital Group, Inc. v. First Derivatives Traders (US Sup Ct) is reported at ¶96,327.