By Nate Raymond
June 13 (Reuters) - A U.S. judge set a May 2015 trial dateon Friday for BP Plc to face claims in a lawsuit accusingthe company of misleading investors about the severity of the2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill.
U.S. District Judge Keith Ellison in Houston set the May 18,2015 date nearly a month after granting class certification tothe shareholders in the lawsuit.
The judge at the time said investors who bought BP'sAmerican depository shares between April 26 and May 28, 2010could pursue claims BP "low-balled" the oil flow rate, and thatthe share price "did not reflect the magnitude of the disaster."
He also declined to certify a separate investor group thatclaimed BP overstated its ability to manage safety issues beforethe explosion, saying damages would be too difficult tocalculate.
Investors can often recover more money at lower cost bysuing as a group. BP's ADS price fell 37 percent from the startof the class period to the first trading day after it ended.
BP has said it would appeal the decision to certify theclass.
The lead plaintiffs are New York State Comptroller ThomasDiNapoli, who oversees that state's Common Retirement Fund, andthe Ohio Public Employees' Retirement System.
Representatives for BP and the plaintiffs did notimmediately respond to requests for comment.
The case is In re: BP Plc Securities Litigation, U.S.District Court, Southern District of Texas, No. 10-md-02185. (Reporting by Nate Raymond in New York; Editing by NoeleenWalder and Dan Grebler)