Zuckerman Spaeder LLP Wins Pre-Trial Dismissal of All Claims Against Former Fannie Mae Executive J. Timothy Howard

Zuckerman Spaeder LLP is pleased to report that yesterday Judge Richard J. Leon of the U.S District Court for the District of Columbia dismissed all claims against former Fannie Mae Chief Financial Officer J. Timothy Howard in a lawsuit filed by investors in the wake of Fannie Mae’s 2004 restatement of financial results. The ruling came in response to Mr. Howard’s motion for summary judgment, which Zuckerman Spaeder attorneys Steven Salky, Eric R. Delinsky, Caroline E. Reynolds, R. Miles Clark and Logan D. Smith filed in August 2011 and argued in June of this year. Finding “overwhelming evidence of Mr. Howard’s good faith” in connection with Fannie Mae’s financial statements at issue in the case, Judge Leon rejected the allegations, finding that the “plaintiffs have not put forth any admissible evidence that Mr. Howard acted without good faith or induced any securities fraud.”

“Judge Leon’s ruling on the baseless allegations made against me eight years ago is a complete vindication,” said Mr. Howard. “I only wish it could undo the turmoil those allegations put my family through, and reverse the catastrophic effect they had on Fannie Mae.”

Judge Leon’s decision comes after more than eight years of litigation against Mr. Howard in the case, In re Fannie Mae Securities Litigation. The lawsuit involved extensive and prolonged discovery, including nearly 67 million pages of documents, the deposition of over 100 witnesses, and engagement of multiple expert witnesses.