Stunned Bear Stearns shareholders have their lawyers on speed dial.

Investors have barely had time to digest the news, Reuters’ Martha Graybow reports, but they are already exploring possible legal avenues, according plaintiffs’ lawyers who specialize in suing large corporations.

“We’ve been contacted by large individual investors and institutional investors,” said Jeffrey Nobel, a partner at class-action law firm Schatz Nobel Izard.

Shareholders might sue Bear and its executives and officers for securities fraud, contending they failed to disclose the company’s true financial health, lawyers say. Bear CEO Alan Schwartz said in a televised interview on Wednesday that the company does not see any pressure on its liquidity and had about $17 billion in excess cash on its balance sheet.

Another possibility are lawsuits challenging the fairness of the deal and whether there are other potential bidders who might pay a higher price, though these suits may have a tough time succeeding because Bear was clearly in dire straits when it agreed to the weekend deal and may have had no other options besides bankruptcy.

“I can’t divulge privileged conversations, but shareholders don’t contact me when they are happy with the way things are going with their investments,” said Ira Press, a lawyer at class-action firm Kirby McInerney, which has spoken with dismayed Bear investors about the matter.

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