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Law Offices of Howard G. Smith Announces Investigation on Behalf of Shareholders of LaBranche & Co Inc., in Connection with the

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^{Published in Business and Finance on Thursday, February 17th 2011 at 16:41 GMT by Market Wire}  

BENSALEM, Pa.--([ BUSINESS WIRE ])--Law Offices of Howard G. Smith announces that it is investigating potential claims against the board of directors of LaBranche & Co Inc. (aLaBranchea or the aCompanya) (NYSE:LAB) related to the Companya™s agreement to be acquired by Cowen Group, Inc. (aCowena). The proposed stock-for-stock transaction is valued at approximately $193 million.

Under the terms of the definitive merger agreement entered into by the parties, LaBranche shareholders will receive upon closing a fixed ratio of 0.9980 shares of Cowen Class A common stock for each outstanding share of LaBranche common stock. Certain executive officers of LaBranche holding approximately 12.5% of the Companya™s outstanding shares have entered into a voting agreement with Cowen to vote their shares in favor of the transaction. The transaction is expected to close by the end of the second quarter or beginning of the third quarter of 2011. The investigation concerns possible breaches of fiduciary duty and other violations of law related to approval of the proposed transaction by LaBranchea™s board of directors.

If you are a shareholder of LaBranche, if you have information or would like to learn more about these claims, or if you wish to discuss these matters or have any questions concerning this announcement or your rights or interests with respect to these matters, please contact Howard G. Smith, Esquire, of Law Offices of Howard G. Smith, 3070 Bristol Pike, Suite 112, Bensalem, Pennsylvania 19020 by telephone at (215) 638-4847, Toll Free at (888) 638-4847, or by email to [ howardsmith@howardsmithlaw.com ], or visit our website at [ http://www.howardsmithlaw.com ].