Photo of Kevin LaCroix

Kevin LaCroix

Subscribe to Kevin LaCroix's Posts

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.

Follow:Read more about Kevin LaCroixKevin's Linkedin ProfileKevin's Twitter Profile

SEC officials have for months been signaling their concerns about companies overstating their AI credentials, a phenomenon that the officials and others have called “AI washing.” As set out and partially transcribed in a September 5, 2024, TheCorporateCounsel.net post (here), SEC Chair Gary Gensler recently recorded a video in which he reiterated concerns about public company AI-related disclosures and the need for companies to match AI-related claims to their actual capabilities. Nor are concerns about companies’ AI-related disclosures limited to the SEC; the tech community is also concerned about companies that overhype their AI qualifications, as illustrated in a September 4, 2024 TechBrew post (here).  

Another audience is also monitoring public companies’ AI-related disclosures – the class action plaintiffs’ lawyers. The number of securities class action lawsuits based on allegedly misleading statements concerning AI continues to grow. In the latest example, on September 4, 2024, a plaintiff shareholder filed a securities suit against software development platform GitLab alleging that the company misled investors by overstating the company’s ability to develop AI software features that would increase market demand for the company’s software development platform. A copy of the complaint can be found here.

Continue Reading Software Development Platform Hit with AI-Related Securities Suit
Jim Peterson

Notwithstanding the prevalent ESG backlash in the U.S., companies still face pressure, from a variety of sources, to present and substantiate their sustainability credentials. One question with respect to sustainability from the accounting perspective is who will provide assurance for sustainability information and under what conditions? In the following guest post, Jim Peterson examines these issues about assurance for sustainability reports. Jim is an American lawyer and a 19-year veteran of the in-house legal group of Arthur Andersen. His international practice concentrates on the accounting profession’s practice quality, regulatory issues, and litigation and disputes. He is also the author of the Re: Balance blog. I would like to thank Jim for allowing me to publish his article 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 Jim’s article.

Continue Reading Guest Post: Assurance for Sustainability Reports – Risk Management Wants a Word

In a post last week, I wrote about the recurring question of who is an “officer” for purposes of determining qualification for advancement, indemnification, and insurance benefits. I received several comments about the post, including a note from Keith Paul Bishop of the Allen Matkins law firm, who writes the California Corporate & Securities Law blog. Bishop wrote to send me links to two of his blog posts, in which he explored the California and Delaware statutory provisions relevant to the question of, as he put it, “what makes an officer an officer?” His blog posts provide interesting additional perspective on this question.

Continue Reading More About Who is an “Officer”

Individuals serving as corporate officers take on significant potential liability exposures in the performance of their duties. As a result, most companies provide their officers with advancement, indemnification, and insurance protection for liabilities incurred while acting as corporate officers. However, it is not always clear who is an “officer” for purposes of claiming the benefits…

The SEC has already made it clear that it intends to pursue enforcement actions against firms that misrepresent their Artificial Intelligence (AI) capabilities. In the latest example of the SEC’s commitment in that regard, earlier this week the SEC filed an enforcement action against an investment advisory firm, its holding company, and the two firms’ CEO, in part based on allegations that the advisory firm claimed it would provide exceptional returns for investors through its use of artificial intelligence. The firm also sought to attract investors by claims about the firm’s plans to go public and about the firm’s relationships to well-known banks and law firms. The SEC’s August 27, 2024, complaint against the firm and its CEO can be found here. The SEC’s August 27, 2024, press release can be found here.

Continue Reading SEC Files Enforcement Action Alleging AI-Related and Pre-IPO Misrepresentations

Here we are, well into the fifth year since the initial outbreak of COVID-19 in the U.S., and yet coronavirus-related securities lawsuits are still being filed. In the latest example, earlier this week plaintiffs’ lawyers filed a securities class action lawsuit against the electronics manufacturing firm Methode Electronics based in part on allegations concerning problems allegedly caused by the company’s loss of key personnel during the pandemic. A copy of the August 26, 2024, complaint can be found here.

Continue Reading COVID-Related Securities Suit Filed Against Electronic Components Company
Daniele Favalli
Alessio Zolpi

In the following guest post, Daniele Favalli and Alessio Zolpi take a look at the availability of D&O insurance in connection with criminal proceedings in Switzerland. Daniele is an attorney admitted to the Zurich bar. He is a partner and co-head of the Dispute Resolution Team of the Zurich-based law firm VISCHER. Alessio is an attorney admitted to the Zurich bar and an associate in the Dispute Resolution Team at VISCHER. I would like to thank Daniele and Alessio for allowing me to publish their article as a guest post on this site. I welcome guest post submissions from responsible authors on topics of interest to this blog’s readers. Please contact me directly if you would like to submit a guest post. Here is Daniele and Alessio’s article.

Continue Reading Guest Post: Switzerland: D&O Coverage Following Criminal Investigations

All eyes have recently been focused on the U.S. Department of Justice’s announcement of its new corporate whistleblower awards program. The DOJ’s program potentially could have a significant impact on future corporate crime prosecutions, but meanwhile the Securities Exchange Commission’s whistleblower program has been up and running for years and indeed just passed the thirteenth…

At this point, there is nearly universal agreement that artificial intelligence (AI) is (or at least will be) transformative. It is also clear that as companies struggle to adapt to the new technology, they also face a host of challenges, including disclosure and regulatory risks, and the related risk of litigation. As a result, AI poses an exceptionally difficult set of circumstances for corporate directors, as discussed in an August 14, 2024, Wall Street Journal article entitled “Why AI Risks Are Keeping Board Members Up at Night” (here). As the article makes clear, while many directors recognize the importance of getting a handle on AI and how it might affect their companies, they are struggling to find the right approach even as AI-related questions become more pervasive.

Continue Reading Boards of Directors and AI-Related Concerns