First, best wishes for a happy and healthy year to all of my readers.

Now, on to the good stuff, with two updates on the Apollo Group trial that has been going on in the District of Arizona.

Back on December 12, the plaintiffs rested their case and defendants moved for a directed verdict on the issue of loss causation. Judge Teilborg denied the motion, noting:

I'm finding that it is a question for the jury to decide whether or not and when there was a corrective disclosure seems to me this jury can conclude that the facts did, to use I think a word the plaintiffs have used, did dribble into the marketplace, and that the [UBS] analyst Kelly Flynn and the reports of that date [September 20, 2004] did indeed connect dots in such a way that they became the corrective disclosure.

And earlier this week, the parties had a meet and confer and agreed to present closing arguments on January 9, 2008, or on the next full day of trial.

The oddsmakers in Vegas are suggesting that we will have a verdict by January 10th.

Special thanks to Jeffrey A. Barrack, a Barrack, Rodos & Bacine partner and member of the trial team for finding the time to send us this stuff.