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To: tech who wrote (2092)	1/7/1998 11:08:00 PM
From: tech	Read Replies (3) \| Respond to of 3391

Year 2000 computer litigation hits the courts Link: amcity.com A small New York computer equipment seller has filed the first class-action lawsuit that involves the reprogramming of computers for Year 2000. Atlaz International is suing San Rafael, Calif.-based Software Business Technologies for $50 million, claiming SBT breached its warranty agreement by refusing to provide Atlaz with upgraded software to reprogram the computers for Year 2000. Industry experts say that Atlaz's class-action suit could become a landmark case as businesses that offer Year 2000 software tools and services grow increasingly concerned about being sued by clients and vendors. The Atlaz suit revolves around whether SBT should have given its customers software upgrades for free for the computers to function properly at the turn of the century. Atlaz bought SBT's patented software in 1995. Last March, SBT introduced a newer version of the software that recognizes dates correctly after Year 2000. "In contrast with many other software companies which are correcting Year 2000 problems and providing those corrections free of charge to their customers, the defendants are improperly requiring customers to pay substantial fees to purchase upgrades in order to remedy the defect," according to documents filed with the California Superior Court in Marin County. Salvatore Graziano, an attorney with New York-based Milberg Weiss Bershad Hynes & Lerach, who is representing Atlaz, says the company decided to file for class-action status because the defect affects several small businesses. "It is increasingly difficult for small businesses to pursue lawsuits on their own, primarily because of financial constraints," Graziano says. But SBT officials say the pursuit by Milberg Weiss has little to do with helping small businesses. "I think this suit is filed to generate publicity," says Robert Davies, chief executive officer of SBT. "There is a notion out there that Year 2000 lawsuits are going to make a lot of people a lot of money. This may just be the start for them." Davies says the company has sold the software to as many as 100,000 customers in 63 countries. Several of them bought the software with the source code, Davies says. A source code allows customers to reprogram the computers on their own without upgrades. Davies says SBT was never contacted by Atlaz about upgrades. "The first thing we heard from them was through Milberg Weiss. We were not given a chance to respond," he says. U.S. businesses are expected to dish out about $300 billion to reprogram their computers to recognize that the year 2000 is not 1900. But small and large businesses are becoming antsy that the reconfiguration will actually work after midnight Dec. 31, 1999. "I will be surprised if there are less than 100 lawsuits filed where people are suing vendors, vendors are suing other vendors, and everybody is suing everybody else," says Lou Marcoccio, Year 2000 research director for the Stamford, Conn.-based Gartner Group. "There will be equipment failures, and companies will be looking to blame somebody for it." Regardless of the trend, SBT has its hands full in defending the Atlaz suit. Many technology companies nationwide consider Milberg Weiss an arch-enemy. The firm has won more than $2 billion in jury awards on behalf of shareholders. Bill Lerach, a Milberg Weiss partner, was the prime cheerleader for California Proposition 211, which sought to expand the rights of shareholders. California voters rejected the proposal last year. Sougata Mukherjee is Washington Bureau Chief for the San Antonio Business Journal.