July 2010

Corporate Scienter: One of the recurring issues in securities litigation is the question of what is required to establish that the corporate defendant acted with scienter. The question was squarely presented by the Vivendi trial verdict, where, as discussed here, the jury found that the corporation was liable, even though the two individual defendants

In a June 30, 2010 opinion (here), a three-judge panel of the Second Circuit reversed the lower court’s ruling that coverage under a directors and officers liability insurance policy for an underlying claim was precluded by the policy’s "insured vs. insured" exclusion, holding that the D&O policy at issue was "ambiguous" under Virginia

In the latest appellate decision to affirm the dismissal of a subprime-related securities class action lawsuit, on June 29, 2010, a three-judge panel of the Ninth Circuit issued an opinion (designated "not for publication") affirming the dismissal of the securities suit that had been filed against Impac Mortgage Holdings and certain of its directors and

While there were a number of significant, high-profile securities class action lawsuits filed during the first-half of 2010, overall filing levels for the year’s first six months, annualized for a full year, were well below last year’s filings and historical averages.

In the first half of 2010, there were 76 new securities class action