* IOOF under investigation by regulators for alleged misconduct
* Lawyers say it may face class action suit
* IOOF rejects claims (Adds comment from IOOF, updates shares)
SYDNEY, Oct 8 (Reuters) - Australia's beleaguered financial services provider IOOF is facing a possible shareholder class action for breaching disclosure obligations and engaging in misleading and deceptive conduct, lawyers said on Thursday.
Maurice Blackburn is inviting shareholders who purchased the security between Dec 2013 and 19 June 2015 to register their interest and claims from Thursday, it said in a statement.
IOOF is being investigated by regulators for allegations of misconduct within its business, including insider trading, cheating on training exams and failure to notify authorities.
On Aug. 28, IOOF set up an independent review of the group's reporting procedures and said clients were not affected by the issues.
In a statement, IOOF said it rejected claims that it had breached disclosure obligations or engaged in misleading of deceptive conduct, adding that it would "vigorously defend the claim".
IOOF shares hit a 6-month low on June 22 after the allegations were reported by Fairfax media. For the year so far, its shares have fallen 2.4 percent, better than the benchmark index's .AXJO near 4 percent drop.
On Thursday, recovered from early losses and were flat in afternoon trade while the broader market was up 0.2 percent. ($1 = 1.3899 Australian dollars)