Disney Publishing Unit Sued Over ‘Beardstown Ladies’ Book

Walt Disney Co.’s Buena Vista publishing unit is being sued for allegedly tricking consumers into buying the “Beardstown Ladies’ Common-Sense Investment Guide.”

The lawsuit was filed Wednesday in New York State Supreme Court by a Connecticut resident, Cheryl Lacoff. The suit seeks class-action status on behalf of more than 800,000 consumers who bought the Beardstown Ladies’ investing guide before April of this year. She’s seeking refunds for consumers, plus punitive damages.

Lacoff bought her copy of “Beardstown Ladies” in 1995 for $19.95, the suit said. Buena Vista, which does business as Hyperion, is based in New York City.

Claudia Peters, spokeswoman for Burbank-based Walt Disney, said the company received a copy of the suit late Wednesday and hadn’t had a chance to review it.

The Beardstown Ladies’ Investment Club, a group of 16 women in Beardstown, Ill., gained fame in the 1990s for reportedly earning average returns of 23.4% over 10 years, and outperforming mutual funds and professional money managers. More than 800,000 copies of the Beardstown Ladies’ investment guide were sold, the suit said. However, after their investment returns were questioned in March, the club admitted that the claim of 23.4% returns was inaccurate, saying it resulted from a computer-input error.