The Supreme Court on Jan. 22 declined to review the $40 billion suit Enron investors brought against financial institutions they say colluded with the now-defunct energy company to hide losses and inflate revenue.

The order comes a week after the Court rejected scheme liability in Stoneridge Investment Partners v. Scientific-Atlanta Inc., thus limiting investor suits against third parties such as vendors, contractors, banks and accountants.

Enron investors, led by Regents of the University of California, were challenging the 5th Circuit decision that blocked their lawsuit against banks that lent money to Enron. The appeals court had found that the banks did not directly mislead the investors.

Last week the High Court came to a similar conclusion in Stoneridge, in which investors suing cable company Charter Communications targeted the companies that supplied Charter's cable boxes. The Court found that Charter Communications investors did not rely on the statements and acts of the suppliers.

Following the Jan. 15 Stoneridge ruling, the banks urged the Court to reject the Enron appeal given its similarity to the Charter Communications case. Lawyers for the Enron investors said the two cases should not be compared due to their “critical differences.”

The financial institutions named in the suit are Merrill Lynch & Co., Credit Suisse Group, Barclays and Pershing. Investors previously settled claims against JPMorgan Chase & Co., Citigroup Inc. and Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce.