Any list of the most important and influential Americans of the 20th century would have to include William Brennan, whose 34-year tenure as an associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court coincided with –and in many ways both reflected and influenced – a period of extraordinary change both in American society and in
N.D. Cal. Applies Morrison to Dismiss Non-U.S. Purchasers from Infineon Securities Suit
It has been a long road — one that included among other things, an amicus brief filed at the U.S. Supreme Court in connection with Morrison v. National Australia Bank – but the defendants in the Infineon Technologies securities suit have managed to have the court dismiss the claims of company shareholders who purchased their
FDIC Sues Three WaMu Execs and Their Wives, Settles with Outside Directors
As recently as this past Monday, commentators were grumbling that the FDIC is moving too slowly in pursue claims against former directors and officers of failed banks. The FDIC has responded in dramatic fashion with a March 16, 2011 lawsuit filing in the Western District of Washington against three former Washington Mutual executives, as well as two
Guest Post: Professionalism in the D&O Claims Process — Civil Behavior is Just Good Business
I am pleased to be able to print below a guest post from my friend and industry colleagueDonna Ferrara. Donna is Senior Vice President and Managing Director, Management Liability Practice Group, at Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. As Donna indicates, this guest post is the result of an email exchange between Donna and
Credit Suisse Subprime Securities Suit Settled for $70 Million
In resolution of a securities case that at one time had actually been dismissed and that even after being revived was substantially narrowed based on the U.S. Supreme Court’s Morrison decision, the parties to the Credit Suisse subprime-related securities class action lawsuit have reached a settlement by which the company has agreed to pay the
U.S. Supreme Court Denies Cert in Apollo Group Securities Suit, Allowing Plaintiffs’ $277.5 Million Jury Verdict to Stand
On March 7, 2011, in the latest development in a long-running securities suit that is among the few securities class action lawsuits to go to trial and that had previously resulted in a $277.5 verdict in plaintiffs’ favor, the U.S. Supreme Court denied Apollo Group’s petition for writ of certiorari. As a result, the
Cornerstone Research Releases 2010 Securities Class Action Settlement Study
Though the average dollar value of securities class action settlements approved in 2010 declined slightly compared to 2009, the median settlement amount reached record levels, according to Cornerstone Research’s annual 2010 Securities Class Action Settlement Study. Cornerstone’s March 10, 2010 press release about the study can be found here, and the study itself can
Leave to Proceed, Class Certification Given in Another Ontario Securities Suit
For the second time, a court has given investors leave to proceed and also certified a plaintiff class in a secondary market misrepresentations claim under the revised Ontario Securities Act. In an order dated March 1, 2011, Ontario Superior Court Justice Wolfram Tausendfreund granted leave to investors to proceed against Arctic Glacier Income Fund
After Morrison, Recoveries for Non-U.S. Investors under the Dutch Collective Settlements Act?
Among the questions that followed in the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court’s Morrison v. National Australia Bank decision has been whether and to what extent plaintiffs’ lawyers will resort to courts outside the U.S. to pursue securities claims on behalf of investors who purchased the defendant company’s shares outside the U.S. The action
FDIC Files Latest Lawsuit Against Failed Bank’s Former Directors and Officers
In the fifth FDIC lawsuit against former directors and officers of failed banks as part of the current bank wave, on March 1, 2011, the FDIC as receiver for the failed Corn Belt Bank and Trust Company filed suit in the Central District of Illinois federal court against four former officer and directors of the