Every little helps in the case of Tesco's shareholders

Outlook After mis-stating its profits by more than a quarter of a billion pounds, Tesco will have been well aware that a lawsuit could appear at the check out. Lawyers swim towards situations like this faster than sharks scenting blood in the water.

The shareholders affected by the share price slump in the wake of the fateful profit announcement have at least managed to get their hands on some good ones.

The problem is that even if they are successful their compensation will ultimately be paid by other shareholders. Peter is suing Paul.

Given the way the stock has rebounded, those who bought in after the announcement when the shares were on special offer aren’t showing any signs of concern. The share price barely moved in response to the legal news, which tells you a lot. But even if such actions appear a little self-defeating, you can hardly blame the Peters for trying. After all, as the slogan goes, “every little helps”.

The pity is that those responsible for situations like that at Tesco rarely seem to suffer much.