Hughes Hubbard Wins Dismissal of Class Action Claims Against Ernst & Young US

June 10, 2025 – The firm recently secured a victory for the U.S. member firm of major accounting services network Ernst & Young (EY) in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey, in which the court dismissed all claims against EY U.S. in a putative class action.

Hughes Hubbard extricated EY U.S. from a potentially complex case in which the plaintiffs allege a massive conspiracy among the central bank of Lebanon, several of that country's commercial banks and others.

The plaintiffs' complaint alleged that the aim of the conspiracy was to defraud U.S. citizens into depositing U.S. dollars in Lebanese banks, and to then trap the dollars in Lebanon. Central to the claims against EY U.S. was the allegation that it was responsible for the alleged actions of another EY network member firm, EY Lebanon. The “one firm" theory – under which plaintiffs seek to treat all firms in an accounting network interchangeably – had lain dormant for close to 20 years after being repeatedly rejected by courts across the country.

Following briefing in late 2023 and early 2024, on June 10, Judge Christine O'Hearn granted EY's motion to dismiss in its entirety, solidly rejecting the “one firm" theory.

Ernst & Young U.S. is a member firm of Ernst & Young Global Limited, which is one of the largest networks of professional services firms in the world and is considered one of the “Big Four" accounting firms. The EY firms provide assurance, tax, information technology, consulting, advisory, and other services to clients around the world.

The Hughes Hubbard team included Bill Maguire, Carl Mills and Jennifer Suh.