3. Taking on Wall Street
It’s not every day someone takes on a Wall Street giant and wins. Colin Cameron FCPA proved it could be done.
Cameron joined City of Swan in Western Australia as head of corporate services in July 2007, at a time when the Perth council was in financial disrepair.
Rummaging through the council’s investment portfolio, Cameron discovered a flip clause in the small print of Lehman Brothers-issued collateralised debt obligations (CDOs). It turned out to be the basis for a long-running class action.
With support from other councils, a legal team and class action funder IMF, Cameron took on Lehman Brothers in New York, London and in Australia.
At the end of a 10-year battle, Lehman Brothers and rating agency Standard & Poor’s paid back A$500 million to 92 investors in the company’s AAA-rated CDOs.
