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Kevin LaCroix

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Kevin M. LaCroix is an attorney and Executive Vice President, RT ProExec, a division of RT Specialty. RT ProExec is an insurance intermediary focused exclusively on management liability issues.

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The number of securities class action lawsuits filed in the first six months of 2025 was roughly level with the number of securities suits filed in the second half of 2024, according to a new report from Cornerstone Research. The number of suits filed in the first half of 2025 is also roughly level with the historical semiannual average number of filings. The July 30, 2025, report, which Cornerstone Research produced in conjunction with the Stanford Law School Securities Class Action Clearinghouse, is entitled “Securities Class Action Filings: 2025 Midyear Assessment,” can be found here. Cornerstone Research’s July 30, 2025, press release regarding the report can be found here.Continue Reading Cornerstone Research: Securities Suit Filings Steady in Year’s First Half

Sarah Abrams

In the following guest post, Sarah Abrams, Head of Claims Baleen Specialty, a division of Bowhead Specialty, takes a look at the D&O underwriting issues associated with Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs), in the context of a pending securities class action lawsuit involving a cannabis-focused REIT. I would like to thank Sarah for allowing me to publish her article as a guest post on this site. I welcome guest post submissions from responsible authors on topics of interest to this site’s readers. Please contact me directly if you would like to submit a guest post. Here is Sarah’s article.Continue Reading Guest Post: High on REITs

One of the signature features of the Dodd-Frank Act was its creation of the SEC whistleblower program, which includes the possibility for whistleblowers to receive generous bounties. The program has grown substantially since its inception. However, there are signs that the program may be undergoing a significant change in direction, as the SEC is “denying a record percentage of whistleblower claims,” according to a July 22, 2025, Bloomberg article, here. According to the article, the recent number of denials suggests that “the agency is enforcing rules and scrutinizing claims more strictly than in past years.”Continue Reading SEC Rejects Record Percentage of Whistleblower Award Claims

Sarah Abrams

In the latest development in the long and continuing saga about college athletes’ compensation, on July 25, 2025, President Trump issued an Executive Order attempting to address many of the relevant issues. In the following guest post, Sarah Abrams, Head of Claims Baleen Specialty, a division of Bowhead Specialty, takes a look at the Executive Order and puts it in the context of the other pending initiatives and related developments. I would like to thank Sarah for allowing me to publish her article as a guest post on this site. I welcome guest post submissions from responsible authors on topics of interest to this site’s readers. Please contact me directly if you would like to submit a guest post. Here is Sarah’s article. Continue Reading Guest Post: Saving College Sports or Burning Down the House?

Rising geopolitical tensions are having an impact across a wide variety of issues, including, in particular, issues having to do with the cross-border movement of people. These issues include changes within respect to immigration and visa policies. These changes not only affect the individuals involved but also companies whose business operations are connected in some way to immigration and visa issues. A recently filed securities lawsuit against a company whose money transfer business is directly linked to the cross-border movement of students for education and study shows not only how changing visa policies, for example, can not only affect companies’ operations and financial results but can also translate into securities litigation.Continue Reading Geopolitical Developments, Visa Policies, and D&O Risk

D&O insurance claims can sometimes lead to intricate coverage disputes, often involving disagreements over the meaning of technical policy terms and provisions. A recent Delaware Supreme Court opinion illustrates the kinds of disputes that can arise. Among other things, the coverage issues the court considered involved disagreements over the meaning and application of the No Action Clause. The result of the court’s opinion is that there will be further proceedings in the court below on the No Action Clause issue. Among other things, the Court’s consideration of the extent to which a policyholder may bring an action against the insurer before the resolution of the underlying claim raises interesting and important issues.  A copy of the Delaware Supreme Court’s July 23, 2025, opinion can be found here.Continue Reading Does the No Action Clause Bar a Policyholder’s Suit for Current Defense Costs?

Sarah Abrams

As illustrated by the lawsuit Donald Trump recently filed against the Wall Street Journal’s parent company Dow Jones and its owner Rupert Murdoch, defamation lawsuits are all the rage these days. In the following guest post, Sarah Abrams, Head of Claims Baleen Specialty, a division of Bowhead Specialty, takes a look at the recent proliferation of defamation lawsuits and considers the D&O insurance ramifications. I would like to thank Sarah for allowing me to publish her article as a guest post on this site. I welcome guest post submissions from responsible authors on topics of interest to this site’s readers. Please contact me directly if you would like to submit a guest post. Here is Sarah’s article.Continue Reading Guest Post: What Did You Say?

In prior posts (most recently here), I have noted the risk to companies in the current global trade environment of governmental enforcement actions relating to the collection and payment of tariffs. Indeed, in a May 12, 2025, memo, Assistant Attorney General Matthew Galeotti identified “trade and customs fraud, including tariff evasion” as the Department of Justice’s number two corporate criminal enforcement priority.

In the latest sign that the Trump administration is ready to aggressively deploy its enforcement tools to ensure compliance with tariffs and other trade goals, the U.S. government has filed a complaint in intervention in a pending qui tam action against a South Carolina furniture company, alleging that the company used false documentation to underreport the price of furniture the company imported from China, resulting in tariff underpayment. The new case underscores the fact that as the current Trump rolls out and enforces its sweeping tariff program, companies will face significant scrutiny and potential claims risk.Continue Reading Trump Administration Brings Tariff Evasion Claim

Sarah Abrams

I am sure that many readers followed with interest the recent litigation brought by college athletes against the NCAA and the top athletic conferences in which the athletes alleged that the defendants conspired to suppress athletes’ compensation. The lawsuit ended in a blockbuster settlement that may reshape the fundamental economics of college sports. Now, as discussed in the following guest post from Sarah Abrams, a group of professional tennis players, have filed a lawsuit in which they, too, allege their compensation has been suppressed, in this case by a “tennis cartel.” Sarah, who is Head of Claims Baleen Specialty, a division of Bowhead Specialty, takes a look at the new lawsuit and considers the D&O insurance implications. I would like to thank Sarah for allowing me to publish her article as a guest post on this site. I welcome guest post submissions from responsible authors on topics of interest to this site’s readers. Please contact me directly if you would like to submit a guest post. Here is Sarah’s article.Continue Reading Guest Post: Antitrust is Love

In numerous public statements, Trump Administration officials have said the Administration intends to use the False Claims Act (FCA) to enforce certain policy priorities. For example, in connection with statements concerning the Administration’s intent to combat “illegal DEI,” officials have declared that corporate DEI policies or practices violating anti-discrimination laws could trigger FCA liability.  There are a number of levels on which potential FCA liability represents a serious corporate liability risk, not least because of the possibility of whistleblowers (including company employees or competitors) launching FCA whistleblower claims. In addition, as discussed below, a recent Southern District of New York ruling highlights how potentially massive FCA liability can be.Continue Reading More About the Trump Administration and Potential False Claims Act Liability