WISDOMTREE TRUST
Supplement Dated March 6, 2012
to each currently effective Prospectus for the
WisdomTree Domestic Equity ETFs and
WisdomTree Global Equity ETFs
The following information supplements, and should be read in conjunction with, the Prospectuses listed above.
On December 1, 2011, Research Affiliates, LLC filed a complaint in the United States District Court for the Central District of California, naming the Trust, its adviser, WisdomTree Asset Management, Inc., and its affiliates, along with other parties, as defendants. The complaint alleges that the fundamentally weighted investment methodology developed by WisdomTree Investments, Inc. (WisdomTree Investments) and employed by the Trust infringes three of plaintiffs patents. The complaint seeks both unspecified monetary damages to be determined and an injunction to prevent further infringement. The Trust filed its answer to the complaint on January 17, 2012. The Trust believes it has strong defenses to this lawsuit based on its belief that (i) the Trusts Funds do not practice the indexing methods as claimed in the asserted patents because, for example, the factors used to select Fund assets include market capitalization and the price of the assets, and thus fall outside the scope of the asserted patents, which generally provide that selection of the assets to be used for creation of the index must be based upon factors that are sufficiently independent of market capitalization; and (ii) the patents should be declared invalid because, among other reasons, there is ample evidence that the concept of fundamentals based indexing was widely known and in commercial use by asset managers and index providers well before the patent applications at issue were filed by plaintiff. For example, in support of the defenses that the asserted patents are invalid, the Trust intends to present evidence that as far back as the early 1990s, Robert Jones at Goldman Sachs managed an earnings weighted index fund. As another example, the Trust intends to present evidence that Dow Jones launched a dividend weighted stock index in 2003. These examples support the Trusts view that the asserted patents are invalid at least because earlier publications and activities of investment professionals anticipated or made obvious plaintiffs alleged inventions.
While at this early stage of the proceedings it is not possible to determine the probability of any outcome or the probability or amount of any loss, the Trust is confident in the merits of its position. Nevertheless, an adverse resolution could have a negative impact on the Trust and the Funds. For example, in the event of an unfavorable outcome the Trust may be required to pay ongoing license fees if WisdomTree Investments cannot change its indexes in a manner that does not infringe on the patents. This could increase the Funds expense ratios and have a negative impact on Fund performance. WisdomTree Asset Management and WisdomTree Investments have contractually agreed to indemnify the Trust and pay any losses, claims and damages (including legal fees) incurred by the Trust or a Fund in connection with the complaint. The Trust intends to vigorously defend against plaintiffs claims.
If you would like additional information, including information about other WisdomTree Funds, please call 1-866-909-9473 or visit www.wisdomtree.com.
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WIS-SP-003/012-0312