Notice of Decertification of Class Action in Valley of Lakes Racketeering Class Action against PNC Bank, N.A., et al.

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The following is a decertification notice in the Valley of Lakes RICO case against PNC Bank, N.A. (by merger with First Eastern Bank, N.A.), and related parties. The case was originally certified as a class action on June 19, 1996. The Court decertified the case as a class action based on the rationale that a determination of when the statute of limitations accrued for each class member would require an individual analysis of each class member's case. The plaintiffs filed a motion for reconsideration, which was denied. The Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit did not accept an interlocutory appeal on the matter.

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE MIDDLE DISTRICT OF PENNSYLVANIA

LEON R. DONGELEWICZ, et al., :
                                   Plaintiffs        :                       No. 3:CV-95-0457
                                                        :                        (Judge McClure)
                  v.                                   :
                                                        :
FIRST EASTERN BANK, et al.,     :
                                   Defendants    :

NOTICE OF DECERTIFICATION OF CLASS ACTION

September 30, 1999

TO: All persons in the Primary Class and the four Subclasses described below who have not previously opted out of this class action litigation.

On June 17, 1994, the plaintiffs in this action, being Leon R. Dongelewicz, Margaret J. Dongelewicz, Francis X. Burns, Laura Burns, Lois A. Burns, George M. De Persia, Sharon M. De Persia, John B. Knox, Betsy C. Knox, John T. Miele, Frank J. Rachubinski, Helen A. Rachubinski, Senta M. Sheridan, Ger D.J. Smit, Waclaw Szczesniak, and Danuta Szczesniak, filed a complaint in the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey. The complaint alleged that the defendants violated the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, the Interstate Land Sales Full Disclosure Act, and the New Jersey Real Estate Full Disclosure Act, and that the defendants committed fraud and deceit. The defendants are First Eastern Bank, N.A., First Eastern Corporation, Frank M. Cedrone, C.B.G. Limited, Oneida Water Company, Valley Utilities Company, Inc., MLA Management Associates, Inc., Ralph Conte, and Arlene Conte. First Eastern Bank, N.A., and First Eastern Corporation now are part of PNC Bank, N.A. The case was transferred to the United States District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania because the subject of the litigation, a real estate development called The Valley of Lakes, is located in the Middle District.

Previously, the court ruled that the case should be maintained as a class action under. Rule 23 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. The Primary Class and four Subclasses were defined as follows:

1. Primary Class: "All persons and entities throughout the United States and its territories (other than the defendants named in the complaint) that, since September 30, 1986, have purchased or owned lots, whether improved or unimproved, in The Valley of Lakes subdivision located in Schuylkill and Luzerne Counties near Hazleton, Pennsylvania."

Appendix A

with respect to the following cause(s) of action: Any claims for damages or injunctive relief under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act ("RICO"), 18 U.S.C. 1962(c), premised upon the alleged racketeering activity of defendants PNC Bank, N.A., by merger with First Eastern Bank, N.A., First Eastern Bank Corp., a subsidiary of PNC Bank Corp., C.B.G. Ltd., Frank Cedrone, Valley Utilities Co., Inc., Oneida Water Co., MLA Management Associates, Inc., Ralph Conte, Arlene Conte, and the Property owners Association of The Valley of Lakes, an association whose board members are George Denke, Jr., Dianne French, Ronald Kichline, and Thomas Peirson, relating to The Valley of Lakes development.

2. Subclass A: "All persons and entities throughout the United States and its territories (other than the defendants named in the complaint) that, since September 20, 1986, have purchased unimproved lots, in The Valley of Lakes subdivision located in Schuylkill and Luzeme Counties near Hazleton, Pennsylvania."

with respect to the following cause(s) of action: Any claims for damages or injunctive relief under the Interstate Land Sales Full Disclosure Act (Land Disclosure Act), 15 U.S.C. 1701, against defendants C.B.G. Ltd., Frank Cedrone, or Ralph Conte premised upon the sale of unimproved lots in The Valley of Lakes subdivision.

3. Subclass B: "All persons and entities throughout the United States and its territories (other than the defendants named in the complaint) that, since September 30, 1986, have owned lots, whether improved or unimproved, in The Valley of Lakes subdivision located in Schuylkill and Luzeme Counties near Hazleton, Pennsylvania.

with respect to the following cause(s) of action: Any claims for damages or injunctive relief under 42 U.S.C. 1983 against defendant C.B.G. Ltd., Frank Cedrone, Property Owners Association (POA), or MLA Management Associates, Inc., premised upon the defendants' alleged deprivation of property interests and/or liberty interests under color of statute, ordinance, regulation, or usage relating to The Valley of Lakes subdivision.

4. Subclass C: "All persons and entities throughout the United States and its territories (other than the defendants named in the complaint) that, since September 30, 1986, have purchased or owned lots, whether improved or unimproved, in The Valley of Lakes subdivision located in Schuylkill and Luzeme Counties near Hazleton, Pennsylvania, based on (a) any offer or disposition made in or from the State of New Jersey; or (b) any offer directed by the developer or its agent originating from outside the State of New Jersey to the persons or entities within the State of New Jersey."

with respect to the following cause(s) of action: Any claims for damages or injunctive relief under the New Jersey Real Estate Sales Full Disclosure Act, N.J.S.A. 45:15-

16.47, against defendants C.B.G. Ltd., Frank Cedrone, or Ralph Conte, relating to The Valley of Lakes subdivision.

5. Subclass D: "All persons and entities throughout the United States and its territories (other than the defendants named in the complaint) that, since September 30, 1986, have purchased or owned lots, whether improved or unimproved, in The Valley of Lakes subdivision located in Schuylkill and Luzeme Counties near Hazleton, Pennsylvania."

with respect to the following cause(s) of action: Any claims for damages or injunctive relief under a claim for common law fraud and deceit pursuant to the law of the State of New Jersey against PNC Bank, N.A., by merger with First Eastern Bank, N.A., First Eastern Bank Corp., a subsidiary of PNC Bank Corp., MLA Management Associates, Inc., C.B.G. Ltd., Frank Cedrone, Valley Utilities Co., Inc., and Oneida Water Company relating to The Valley of Lakes subdivision.

However, the court further ordered that the class certification was provisional and was subject to change in light of further developments in the case.

On September 30, 1999, on application of the defendants, PNC Bank, N.A., MLA Management Associates, Inc., Arlene Conte, and Ralph Conte, the court determined that the claims of the members of the Primary Class and the four Subclasses involved varying factual matters and should no longer be maintained as a class action. As a result of this determination the court decertified the Primary Class and four Subclasses, thereby removing the members of each from this suit. Therefore, all persons or entities who are members of the above-described Primary Class and/or one of the four Subclasses who may possess claims against the named defendants related to the purchase and/or ownership of a lot or lots in The Valley of Lakes subdivision are no longer parties to this suit and cannot advance their claims in the context of this suit.

Accordingly, you are hereby notified that your interests are no longer being represented in this lawsuit by the plaintiffs or their counsel. However, if you are a member of the Primary Class and/or one of the four Subclasses described above, and you believe that you have a claim or claims against one or more of the named defendants relating to the purchase and/or ownership of a lot or lots in The Valley of Lakes, you may still attempt to pursue your claim, pursuant to one of the statutes or common law recited above, by filing a complaint.

If you choose to pursue such a claim, you should be aware that the claim may be subject to prior rulings by the court, or to defenses such as the expiration of the statute of limitations, which already has been asserted successfully as to some claims in this case. Due to the complicated nature of the case, it would be advisable for you to contact an attorney before attempting to pursue your claims in court.

A copy of the Memorandum and Order of Court decertifying the Primary Class and the four Subclasses is available, for a fee, from:

Clerk of Court
U.S. District Court
Federal Building
240 West Third Street
P.O. Box 608
Williamsport, PA 17701
(570)323-6380.

Nothing in this Notice is to be construed as an expression of the belief of the court as to the likelihood of success in obtaining relief or as to the merits of any claim(s) which a member of the now-decertified Primary Class or Subclasses may assert. This notice is intended merely to advise you of the decertification of the Primary Class and four Subclasses due to the effect of the decertification on the members of the Primary Class and four Subclasses.