FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. files for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy
New York City - September 28, 2008 - Lehman Brothers Holding Inc. files for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy in a financial plight to manage further losses.
The Lehman Brothers corporation is a principal cornerstone of the US financial sector and in response to the company’s fold, competitors are bracing for a financial firestorm.
Due to an influx in the use of the relatively safe market of real estate as assets for securities, many firms such as Lehman Brothers (LB) began purchasing mortgage-backed securities in order to pool capital and marginalize risk. In the summer of 2007, the subprime mortgage crisis ensued when housing prices dropped and firms were not able to pay the interest on their debts due to reduced income.
On behalf of Lehman Brothers, we would like to extend our utmost apology to clients and employees affected by our intent to file for bankruptcy. We are terribly sorry for the financial loss of our client’s investments on what was assumed a safe market. We would like to thank our employees for the years of loyal service and dedication, and express our regret for the loss of thousands of opportunities and jobs.
After filing for bankruptcy, LB is in the process of transferring investment portfolios to Barclays Capital, the investment banking division of Barclays Plc. Barclays purchased the core business from LB. LB intends to continue to operate as an investment firm until further notice under Barclays investment division. For further details, visit the firm’s website, www.Lehman.com/.
Lehman Brothers was founded in 1850 by two cotton brokers in Montgomery, Alabama. The firm was moved to New York City after the Civil war. During March 2008, JP Morgan Chase bought Lehman Brothers out during their first risk of bankruptcy. The Lehman Brothers company continued a downward spiral and was not able to get out of bankruptcy.
Any questions that pertain to the bankruptcy can contact Mark Wisenhower at Barclays Bank Plc. MWisenhower@barclaysbank.com. Questions that pertain to clients who lost stock can contact Michelle Lowery at Barclays Bank Plc. MLowery@barclaysbank.com.
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peer review
1. Good format and good line breaks. Need to include correct formatting for contact information at the bottom (not in paragraphs).
2. Give the press all the info they need (don't include a website for further details)
3. Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. files for bankruptcy (Chapter 11 not really necessary)
4.New York City - September 28, 2008 - Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. files for bankruptcy after housing prices drop and debts increase.
5. Make sure the information is newsworthy-good background information and it is very timely
6. Make it as easy as possible for media reps to do their jobs - include all contact information, leave out websites, and avoid financial jargon.
comment
1. There are no obvious formatting issues.
2. There does not seem to be any other issues
3. Lehman Brothers files Bankrupcy; Investors are unhappy
4. In order to lessen the damage that has already occurred, Lehman Brothers files for Chapter 11 bankrupcy.
5. Deal with the facts. This does a really good job of explaining the 5 'W's.
"Avoid excessive use of adjectives and fancy language. " This might be where you could work on it. While the language is not difficult to read, those who do not have a strong understanding of financial management might have a difficult time understanding it.
1. Contact info needs to laid
1. Contact info needs to laid out differently. It should not be in sentence format.
2. Should not apologize as much as give the facts.
3. Keep the headline. It is short and to the point.
4. New York City - September 28, 2008 After filing for chapter 11 bankruptcy the Lehman brothers try to prevent further loss.
5. To repetetive in head line and 1st sentence. Good facts.
GM group's comments
1. Remove personal pronouns. The contact info should be in a list rather than in paragraph format because it's easier to read. (because written press release, not a speech)
2. Incorrect usage of email. List the contact info like bullet points.
3. Lehman Brothers Bought Out by Barclay's Bank.
4. Put your apology sentence here.
5. You did a good job of presenting material. Probably don't need to inlcude the company history.
LB Press Release
1) Rework contact information
2) Looks Good
3) Lehman Brothers Holdings is looking at a dim future with bankruptcy on the horizon
4) Lehman Brothers Holding Inc. files for bankruptcy in financial desperation to manage further losses.
5) The background information/history is good but the whole document needs work on overall flow
re: Press Release The best group
You want to keep your focus on the actual event, which is the bankruptcy. A press release isn't the place to apologize to employees and clients (there are other texts for those purposes), or to speculate about what competitors might do. I encourage you to look at the official Lehman press release on this topic for comparison:
http://www.lehman.com/press/pdf_2008/091508_lbhi_chapter11_announce.pdf
This isn't necessarily a perfect model, but it would benefit you to analyze it.
Also be aware of mechanics. The first sentence doesn't quite make sense. You could say "Lehman Brothers Holding Inc. files for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy to manage further losses" or "Lehman Brothers Holding Inc. is in a financial plight and has filed for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy to manage further losses," for example. "In response to the company’s fold" is also problematic. You would need a noun such as "collapse" to make the sentence work.