SLFI Sterling Financial (MM)

The law firm of Stull, Stull & Brody, announces that today it has filed a class action complaint in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York against the Bank of Lancaster, N.A., a subsidiary of the publicly traded entity, Sterling Financial Corporation ("Sterling"or "Company") (NASDAQ: SLFI) and against its subsidiary Equipment Finance, LLC ("EFI") and certain officers and directors of EFI and Sterling on behalf of an institutional investor and a proposed class of purchasers of securities of Sterling during the period April 27, 2004 and May 24, 2007, inclusive (the "Class Period"). The Complaint alleges that the Bank of Lancaster, its subsidiary EFI, and certain officers and/or directors of Sterling and EFI violated Sections 10(b) and/or 20(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 by engaging in a fraudulent scheme to artificially inflate the price of Sterling securities during the Class Period and thereby defrauding persons who purchased Sterling securities during the Class Period. Among the alleged actions of the complaint are that Defendants knowingly employed devices, schemes and artifices to defraud plaintiff and the proposed class by providing materially false and misleading financial information regarding the subsidiary EFI. As a result of the scheme to defraud, Sterling was forced to announce that its previously issued financial statements for fiscal years ("FY") ended 2004 through 2006, and interim periods therein, could no longer be relied upon. On May 24, 2007 Sterling announced that irregularities were present in certain financing contracts which EFI had entered into and that certain of EFI�s officers and directors had subverted internal controls, concealed credit delinquencies and falsified financial contracts and related documents. In addition, Sterling announced that it had preliminarily determined that it would record an after tax charge for FY 2006 of approximately $145 million to $165 million. The impact on Sterling�s stock was significant, damaging plaintiff and members of the Class. The plaintiff seeks to recover damages on its own behalf and on behalf of the Class and is represented by the law firm of Stull Stull & Brody which has extensive experience successfully prosecuting complex securities fraud class actions on behalf of defrauded investors. If you engaged in transactions of Sterling securities during the Class Period, you may, not later than July 24, 2007 move the court to be appointed as lead plaintiff. In order to serve as lead plaintiff, however, you must meet certain legal requirements. If you wish to discuss this action or have any questions concerning this notice or your rights or interests with respect to this matter, please contact: Howard T. Longman, Esq., at Stull, Stull & Brody P.C., toll-free at 800-337- 4983 or alternatively at 845-371-4788,or via email at TSVI@AOL.COM or by writing to him at the following address: Stull, Stull & Brody, 6 East 45th Street, Suite 500, New York, New York 10017.