Pittsburgh Law Firm of Alfred G. Yates Jr, P.C. Announces Class Action Lawsuit Against Answerthink, Inc.

Business Editors

PITTSBURGH--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 6, 2002

A class action lawsuit has been commenced in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida by the Law Office of Alfred G. Yates Jr, P.C. on behalf of purchasers of the securities of Answerthink, Inc. ("Answerthink" or the "Company") (NYSE:ANSR) between October 17, 2000 and April 25, 2002, inclusive.

The Complaint alleges that defendants Answerthink, John F. Brennan, Ted A. Fernandez ("Fernandez"), Allan R. Frank ("Frank"), Edmund R. Miller, William Kessinger and Bruce Rauner violated Sections 10(b) and 20(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, and Rule 10b-5 promulgated thereunder. As alleged in the complaint, throughout the Class Period, defendants issued a series of false and misleading statements announcing "record" financial results. In violation of Generally Accepted Accounting Principles ("GAAP"), the complaint alleges, defendants failed to disclose that the "record" results included revenues recognized from transactions with related parties who were near-bankruptcy and lacked the financial means to finalize the sales. Specifically, in order to boost reported revenues and earnings during the third and fourth quarters of 2000, the Company recognized approximately $16.7 million of revenue in connection with various transactions with related parties who were either facing imminent bankruptcy or were otherwise unable to survive as a going concern and remit the full $16.7 million as promised. As a result, the complaint alleges, defendants were able to report artificially inflated results which permitted defendants Fernandez and Frank to receive performance-based bonuses and allowed certain of the defendants to sell stock at inflated prices. Ultimately, more than $6 million of receivables and worthless stock in one of the related party companies, which was received as partial payment, was written off through a charge to earnings.

On February 7, 2002, when defendants were no longer able to include these illusory revenues in their financial results, the Company reported a huge drop in revenues. As a result, Answerthink investors who purchased stock in reliance on the integrity of defendants' statements and publicly-filed financial reports have sustained tremendous losses. Answerthink stock, which traded at $18 per share on October 17, 2000, dramatically declined and traded at only $1.98 per share on November 13, 2002.

If you bought the securities of Answerthink between October 17, 2000 and April 25, 2002, you may, no later than January 13, 2003, request that the Court appoint you as lead plaintiff.

If you have any questions about how you may be able to recover for your losses, or if you would like to consider serving as one of the lead plaintiffs in this lawsuit, you are encouraged to call the firm at either 1-800-391-5164 or 412-391-5164 or contact us by e-mail at [e-mail]. Your ability to share in any recovery is not, however, affected by the decision whether or not to serve as a lead plaintiff. You may retain counsel of your choice to serve as your counsel in this action.