View this article at: http://dev.macnn.com/articles/07/01/22/apple.lawsuit.leader Monday, Jan 22, 2007 5:50pm New York pension fund heads... The New York City Employees' Retirement System today said it was chosen as the lead plaintiff in a shareholder lawsuit against Apple as a result of the company's stock options practices. The pension was appointed by judge Jeremy Fogel of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California to head up the lawsuit, claiming that Apple violated securities laws via its options awards to top executives. The lawsuit seeks class-action status on behalf of other Apple investors, according to Reuters. The New York City Retirement System holds roughly one million shares of Apple stock valued at approximately $87 million based on current stock values. Large investors often seek the status of lead plaintiff to hold more control over litigation, according to the report.