Law Offices of Marc S. Henzel Announces Class Action Lawsuit Against Collins & Aikman Corp.

Business Editors/Legal Writers

BALA CYNWYD, Pa.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 1, 2003

A class action lawsuit was filed in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, on behalf of purchasers of the securities of Collins & Aikman Corp. (NYSE:CKC) between August 7, 2001 and August 2, 2002, inclusive, (the "Class Period"), and who suffered damages thereby.

The action, is pending against defendants CKC, Heartland Industrial Partners L.P. ("Heartland") and ten senior officers and/or directors of CKC.

The complaint charges that defendants violated Sections 10(b) and 20(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, and Rule 10b-5 promulgated thereunder, by issuing a series of materially false and misleading statements to the market between August 7, 2001 and August 2, 2002. The complaint alleges that Heartland was at all relevant times a private equity firm that presented itself as being expert in leveraged buyouts of industrial manufacturers and that, in February 2001, Heartland acquired a controlling interest in CKC. CKC was at all relevant times a manufacturer of automotive interior components. The complaint further alleges that Heartland and CKC acquired Textron Automotive Company's TAC-Trim division and that, throughout the class period, Heartland and CKC repeatedly stated that the TAC-Trim acquisition would be accretive to earnings and that, in addition to doubling CKC's annual revenue, the TAC-Trim acquisition would increase operating income by reducing costs through synergies and economies of scale. The truth was revealed on August 5, 2002, when the Company reported a net loss of $20.3 million, or $0.29 per diluted share, compared with net income of $9.2 million, or $0.11 per diluted share a year earlier, and announced that it expected 2002 earnings to be $0.20 to $0.26 per share, well below the consensus estimate of $0.74 per share. On this news, the investing public dumped its CKC stock, pushing the price down 49% to close at $2.81 on relatively high trading volume.

Plaintiff is represented by The Law Offices of Marc S. Henzel. If you are a member of the class, you may, no later than May 23, 2003, request that the Court appoint you as lead plaintiff. A lead plaintiff is a representative party that acts on behalf of other class members in directing the litigation. In order to be appointed lead plaintiff, the Court must determine that the class member's claim is typical of the claims of other class members, and that the class member will adequately represent the class. Under certain circumstances, one or more class members may together serve as "lead plaintiff." Your ability to share in any recovery is not, however, affected by the decision whether or not to serve as a lead plaintiff.

If you have any questions concerning this case or your rights or interests with respect to these matters, please contact: Marc S. Henzel, Esq. of The Law Offices of Marc S. Henzel, 273 Montgomery Ave, Suite 202 Bala Cynwyd, PA 19004-2808, by telephone [phone] or [phone], by facsimile [phone], by e-mail at [e-mail] or visit the firm's website at http://members.aol.com/mhenzel182.