Scott+Scott Attorneys at Law LLP (“Scott+Scott”), an international shareholder and consumer rights litigation firm, has filed a securities class action lawsuit in the United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania against Western Asset Management Company, LLC (“WAMCO” or the “Company”), Franklin Resources, Inc. (“Franklin”), and Stephen Kenneth Leech, II (“Leech”) (collectively, “Defendants”). The Class Action asserts claims under §§10(b) and 20(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (15 U.S.C. §§78j(b) and 78t(a)) and U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Rule 10b-5 promulgated thereunder (17 C.F.R. §240.10b‑5) on behalf of all persons and entities that purchased and/or otherwise acquired shares of the “Western Asset US Core Bond Fund” mutual fund classes – Class I (ticker: “WATFX”), Class A (ticker: “WABAX”), Class C (ticker: “WABCX”), Class FI (ticker: “WAPIX”), Class IS (ticker: “WACSX”), and Class R (ticker: “WABRX”) – and the “Western Asset Core Plus Bond Fund” mutual fund classes – Class A (ticker: “WAPAX”), Class C (ticker: “WAPCX”), Class C1 (ticker: “LWCPX”), Class FI (ticker: “WACIX”), Class R (ticker: “WAPRX”), Class I (ticker: “WACPX”), Class IS (ticker: “WAPSX”) – between January 1, 2021 and October 31, 2023, inclusive (the “Class Period”), and were damaged thereby (the “Class”). The Class Action filed by Scott+Scott is captioned: The Western PA Electrical Employees Insurance Trust Fund v. Western Asset Management Company, LLC, et al., Case No. 2:25-cv-00937.

LEAD PLAINTIFF DEADLINE ON SEPTEMBER 2, 2025

WAMCO is a limited liability company, SEC-registered investment advisor, and specialist investment manager that is contracted by registered mutual funds and private funds to manage their investment portfolios and by other investment advisors as a sub-advisor.

The Class Action alleges that, during the Class Period, Defendants made misleading statements and omissions regarding the Company’s business, financial condition, and prospects. Specifically, Defendants failed to warn investors that: (1) Defendants favored certain WAMCO strategies, like Macro Opps, over other WAMCO strategies, like Core and Core Plus; (2) Defendants disfavored certain WAMCO strategies, like Core and Core Plus; (3) any “compliance policies and procedures” that WAMCO maintained “to result in fair allocations of investment opportunities to clients” were either insufficient to ensure that Leech and his WAMCO Team fairly allocated trades among the strategies they managed or were expressly disregarded by Defendants in order to allow the favoring of certain WAMCO strategies at the expense of other WAMCO strategies; and (4) any “oversight mechanisms” that WAMCO maintained were either insufficient to monitor Leech and his WAMCO Team or were expressly disregarded by Defendants in order to allow the favoring of certain WAMCO strategies at the expense of other WAMCO strategies.

As a result, Defendants’ actions operated as a fraud or deceit on the Class, artificially reducing the price of the “Western Asset US Core strategy” mutual fund classes during the Class Period, damaging Class members.

LEAD PLAINTIFF DEADLINE ON SEPTEMBER 2, 2025

If you purchased and/or otherwise acquired shares of the “Western Asset US Core Bond Fund” mutual fund classes identified above during the Class Period and were damaged thereby, you are a member of the “Class” and may be able to seek appointment as lead plaintiff.

If you wish to apply to be lead plaintiff, a motion on your behalf must be filed with the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania no later than September 2, 2025. The lead plaintiff is a court-appointed representative for absent class members of the Class. You do not need to seek appointment as lead plaintiff to share in any Class recovery in the Class Action. If you are a Class member and there is a recovery for the Class, you can share in that recovery as an absent Class member.

If you wish to apply to be lead plaintiff, please contact attorney Nicholas Bruno at (888) 398-9312 or at nbruno@scott-scott.com.

What Can You Do?

You may contact an attorney to discuss your rights regarding the appointment of lead plaintiff or your interest in the Class Action. You may retain counsel of your choice to represent you in the Class Action.

About Scott+Scott

Scott+Scott is an international law firm known for its expertise in representing corporate clients, institutional investors, businesses, and individuals harmed by anticompetitive conduct or other forms of wrongdoing, including securities law and shareholder violations. With more than 100 attorneys in eight offices in the United States, as well as three offices in Europe, our advocacy has resulted in significant monetary settlements on behalf of our clients, along with other forms of relief. Our highly experienced attorneys have been recognized for being among the top financial lawyers in 2024 by Lawdragon, WWL: Commercial Litigation 2024, and Legal 500 in Antitrust Civil Litigation, and have received top Chambers 2024 rankings. In addition, we have been repeatedly recognized by the American Antitrust Institute for the successful litigation of high-stakes anticompetitive claims in the United States.

To learn more about Scott+Scott, our attorneys, or complex case resolution, please visit www.scott-scott.com.

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