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NEWS from the Office of the New York State Comptroller
Contact: Press Office 518-474-4015

New York State Comptroller DiNapoli and New York City Retirement Systems and Pension Funds Announce Appointment as Lead Plaintiffs in Wynn Resorts Shareholder Lawsuit

May 14, 2018

New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli, as trustee of the New York State Common Retirement Fund (the Fund), today announced that he and the New York City Retirement Systems and Pension Funds have been appointed co-lead plaintiffs in a derivative lawsuit filed against certain officers and directors of Wynn Resorts. The order appointing DiNapoli and the NYC Funds as co-lead plaintiffs was issued May 10 by Nevada's Clark County District Court Judge Joe Hardy, Jr.

The amended complaint, which DiNapoli and the New York City Funds filed on March 23, 2018, alleges that current and former Wynn Resorts' officers and directors breached their fiduciary duties by failing to act on knowledge that former CEO Stephen Wynn made repeated unwanted sexual advances toward employees and pressured employees to perform sex acts, allegations detailed in a January 26, 2018 Wall Street Journal exposé revealing Mr. Wynn's history of harassment based on interviews with over 150 witnesses. Mr. Wynn has since resigned from his positions as Board Chairman and CEO of Wynn Resorts and sold all of his stock holdings in the company he named after himself.

"I am pleased that the court has appointed us to serve as a co-lead plaintiff and recognized that we have the resources and expertise to pursue this case on behalf of Wynn Resorts' stockholders. The company's leadership has betrayed its employees and its investors through its apparent failure to hold Mr. Wynn accountable for repeatedly harassing employees on company property. We look forward to prosecuting this action vigorously to mitigate the damage caused by Mr. Wynn and the other defendants," DiNapoli said.

NYC Corporation Counsel Zachary W. Carter, who heads the City Law Department and represents the City Pension funds, said, "As alleged in our complaint, the leadership of Wynn Resorts turned a blind eye to, and covered up, misconduct that lasted for more than a decade. Our suit seeks to hold the board and its directors accountable for failing to meet their fiduciary obligations to shareholders, put an end to this misconduct, and require the company to foster a workplace where workers feel safe and respected."

Comptroller DiNapoli and the New York City Pension Funds are represented in this action by Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll PLLC.

To view the complaint visit: http://osc.state.ny.us/sites/default/files/other/documents/pdf/2019-04/wynn-complaint-amended-180323.pdf

About the New York State Common Retirement Fund

The New York State Common Retirement Fund is the third largest public pension fund in the United States with estimated assets of $209.1 billion as of Dec. 31, 2017. The Fund holds and invests the assets of the New York State and Local Retirement System on behalf of more than one million state and local government employees and retirees and their beneficiaries. The Fund has consistently been ranked as one of the best managed and best funded plans in the nation. The Fund's fiscal year ends March 31, 2018.

About the New York City Pension Funds and Retirement Systems

The New York City pension funds, consisting of the New York City Employees' Retirement System, New York City Teachers' Retirement System, New York City Police Pension Fund, New York City Fire Department Pension Fund, and New York City Board of Education Retirement System, are collectively the fourth largest pension system in the United States with more than $192 billion in assets under management.