In a February 8, 2014 article entitled “A Shrunken Giant” (here), the Economist magazine examined BP’s efforts to regain its footing after the disastrous April 2010 Deepwater Horizon explosion and oil spill. The article concludes by stating that “Repairing the balance sheet and books is one thing. Repairing BP’s reputation for management
Cornerstone Research: FDIC Lawsuits Continue to Mount, Individuals Contributing Out-of-Pocket to FDIC Claims Settlements
In 2013, the number of lawsuits the FDIC has filed against the directors and officers of failed banks reached the highest annual level during the current wave of failed bank litigation, though the pace of litigation filings peaked in the second quarter and slowed as the year progressed, according to the latest report from Cornerstone
A Closer Look at the EEOC’s 2013 Enforcement and Litigation Statistics
During the 2013 fiscal year (ended September 30, 2013), the number of charges filed with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission was down 5.7% compared with the previous fiscal year, but the EEOC’s FY 2013 monetary recoveries of $372.1 million through administrative processes were the highest ever in any single fiscal year. The EEOC’s February
Another Mug Shot Trove
Readers continue to send in pictures of their D&O Diary mugs taken at locations far and near, including some locations that I never could have imagined in a million years.
Readers will recall that in a recent post, I offered to send out a D&O Diary coffee mug to anyone who requested one –
Even if Fraud on the Market is Dumped, Don’t Cut Back on D&O Insurance
It is hard to prognosticate the outcome of the Halliburton case now before the U.S. Supreme Court. But while we can’t be sure what the outcome will be, we can start to think about what will happen if the Supreme Court overturns Basic. In an interesting February 7, 2014 post on the Harvard Law School
Health Care Reform and the Antitrust Laws: Big Concerns for Health Care Organizations and Their D&O Insurers
In a recent industry study concluding that health care organizations face increasing rates for management liability insurance, as well as tightening terms, one of the explanations suggested for these restrictive conditions is that the carriers are concerned that as health care organizations respond to the incentives and pressures of the Affordable Care Act – particularly
Here’s Something We Haven’t Seen for a While: An Increase in U.S. Public Companies
The number of companies with shares listed on U.S. stock exchanges increased last year compared to 2012, which is the first annual increase in the number of publicly traded companies in the U.S. since 1997, according to information from the World Federation of Exchanges. As reflected in a February 5, 2014 Wall Street
Congratulations, Dude, You’re Moving to Cleveland! (Seriously. You’re Moving to Cleveland.)
History shows that the places commerce favors change over time. In the United States, many of the cities that prospered in the 19th century faded in the 20th century as the logic of business shifted the location of prosperity. That same process will unfold again in the 21st century. Seemingly
Advisen Releases 2013 Corporate and Securities Litigation Report
Even though (as have been well-documented by other observers) securities class action litigation filings increased in 2013, overall corporate and securities litigation filings during 2013 declined for the second year in a row, according to a February 4, 2014 report from the insurance information firm, Advisen. Though the corporate and securities filing activity in
Target Directors and Officers Hit with Derivative Suits Based on Data Breach
I have frequently noted that among the many exposures a company experiencing a data breach could encounter is the possibility of a shareholder suit alleging that the company’s board breached their fiduciary duties by failing to take sufficient steps to protect the company from a breach and its consequences. This possibility has now been