Brower Piven Announces the Filing in Federal Court in Colorado of a Class Action Lawsuit Against Oppenheimer Champion Income Fund Expanding the Class Period to Include November 1, 2006 Through December 31, 2008 and Encourages Investors Who Have Losses in Excess of $100,000 From Investment in Oppenheimer Champion Income Fund to Inquire About the Lead Plaintiff Position in Securities Fraud Class Action Lawsuit Before the April 25, 2009 Lead Plaintiff Deadline

• Press Release
• Source: Brower Piven, A Professional Corporation
• On 4:23 pm EST, Tuesday March 3, 2009

Brower Piven, A Professional Corporation announces that a class action lawsuit has been commenced in the United States District Court for the District of Colorado on behalf of all purchasers who purchased or held shares of the Oppenheimer Champion Income Fund ("Champion Fund" or the "Fund") (NASDAQ: OPCHX) (NASDAQ: OCHBX) (NASDAQ: OCHCX) (NASDAQ: OCHNX) (NASDAQ: OCHYX) offered by OppenheimerFunds, Inc. ("OppenheimerFunds, Inc.") during the period between November 1, 2006 and December 31, 2008, inclusive (the "Class Period"). The suit is on behalf of two classes of shareholders, one under state law claiming breach of contract and secondly all fund purchasers during the outlined period of November 1, 2006 to December 31, 2008. The suit claims Oppenheimer, which runs the Oppenheimer Champion Income Fund ("The Fund"), misled investors about the Fund's investment style and risky investments resulting in an 82 percent collapse of the Fund's value.

Related Quotes

Symbol	Price	Change
OPCHX	1.81	0.00

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No class has yet been certified in the above action. Members of the Class will be represented by the lead plaintiff and counsel chosen by the lead plaintiff. If you wish to choose counsel to represent you and the Class, you must apply to be appointed lead plaintiff no later than April 25, 2009 and be selected by the Court. The lead plaintiff will direct the litigation and participate in important decisions including whether to accept a settlement and how much of a settlement to accept for the Class in the action. The lead plaintiff will be selected from among applicants claiming the largest loss from investment in the Company during the Class Period. You may contact Brower Piven (through hoffman@browerpiven.com or 410/986-0036) to answer any questions you may have in that regard.

The complaint accuses the defendants of violations of the Securities Act of 1933 and alleges defendants marketed and sold the fund as a conservative high-income fund, portraying it as diversified and higher yielding. Plaintiffs claim fund managers failed to disclose the true risk of the fund which took gambles on mortgage-backed securities and illiquid derivatives that ultimately led to the fund's collapse. According to the complaint, beginning in July 2008, shares declined as did other high-yield funds as the credit crunch exposed the volatility and collapse of mortgage-related investments. Further, the complaint asserts that The Champion Fund continued to fall further as Lehman Brothers Holdings and other institutions collapsed. The complaint also alleges that overall, the Fund experienced an 82 percent drop and that compared to other high-yield funds that averaged a drop of 32 percent in 2008, The Champion Fund experienced an almost $2 billion drop in assets in 15 months. Additionally, the complaint sites several misleading representations of the fund from defendants including, "In selecting securities for the Fund, the overall strategy is to build a broadly diversified portfolio to help moderate the special risks of investing in high-yield debt instruments." The Plaintiffs in the case claim the Fund collapsed because fund managers targeted highly risky derivatives in an effort to "pump returns."

If you have suffered a net loss for all transactions in Oppenheimer Funds during the Class Period, you may obtain additional information about this lawsuit and your ability to become a lead plaintiff by contacting Brower Piven at www.browerpiven.com, by email at hoffman@browerpiven.com, by calling 410-986-0036, or at Brower Piven, A Professional Corporation, The World Trade Center-Baltimore, 401 East Pratt Street, Suite 2525, Baltimore, Maryland 21202. Attorneys at Brower Piven have combined experience litigating securities and class action cases of over 40 years. If you choose to retain counsel, you may retain Brower Piven without financial obligation or cost to you, or you may retain other counsel of your choice. You need take no action at this time to be a member of the class.

 
CONTACT:
Charles J. Piven
Brower Piven, A Professional Corporation
Baltimore, Maryland
410/986-0036
Email Contact