In an interesting development that could prefigure further climate change-related disclosure litigation, an Australian investor has filed a lawsuit against the Australian Federal Government and two government officials, on her own behalf and on behalf of over investors in Australian Government Bonds, for allegedly failing to disclose to investors the climate change risks attached to the sovereign bonds.  According to an August 12, 2020 memo from the Allens law firm (here), the suit is “a first-of-its-kind action worldwide,” one that could serve as a “stepping stone” toward both more activist litigation and more commercially focused climate change disclosure litigation. Continue Reading Australian Government Sued Over Sovereign Bond Climate Change-Related Disclosures

In the following guest post, Christopher Bannon of the Aronberg Goldgehn law firm takes a look at a recent ruling in which the court addressed the question of whether a lawsuit seeking the return of an administrative fee is a suit for “damages” within the meaning of the applicable insurance policy. A version of this article previously was published as an Aronberg Goldgehn client alert. I would like to thank Chris for allowing me to publish his 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 Chris’s guest post. Continue Reading Guest Post: Restitution of Administrative Fee Does Not Represent Covered Damages

The news that McDonald’s had filed a lawsuit against its former CEO, Stephen Easterbrook, to recoup severance compensation the company had paid Easterbrook, made the front page of the Wall Street Journal. The company contends that Easterbrook had only been terminated last November “without cause” – entitling him to a full severance package – because he had lied to investigators about the nature and extent of his relationship with company employees. The lawsuit contends — based on evidence of three additional sexual relationships Easterbrook had with company employees that only came to light this summer — that Easterbrook should have been terminated for cause. As discussed below, the lawsuit raises a number of interesting issues.  A copy of the company’s August 10, 2020 filing on Form 8-K about the lawsuit can be found here, and a copy of the complaint, which was attached to the 8-K, can be found here. Continue Reading Thinking About McDonald’s Lawsuit Against its Former CEO

In a development that will come as a surprise to no one who has been reading the business news pages over the last few weeks, Eastman Kodak and certain of its executives have been hit with a securities class action lawsuit based on allegations surrounding the disclosure of a $765 loan to the company from a government agency for the company to develop pharmaceutical materials, including ingredients of COVID-19 drugs, as well as on allegations of insider trading relating to the loan disclosures. As discussed below, the lawsuit is the latest in a series of securities class action lawsuits that have been filed related to the coronavirus outbreak. The complaint in the Kodak lawsuit can be found here. Continue Reading Kodak Hit With Securities Suit Over COVID-19-Related Loan Disclosure and Related Trading

Winged Victory of Samothrace at the Louvre Museum in Paris.

I miss travel. No, I don’t miss the crowded airports, the delayed departures, the missed connections, or the lost luggage.  I miss the experience of discovering a city for the first time, tasting new and delicious foods, and learning about unfamiliar languages and cultures.

 

I also miss art. I miss encountering painting, music, architecture, and sculpture, as I do when I am traveling. For me, exploring museums, visiting cultural sites, and attending concerts are all such important parts of travel.

 

In the day-to-day work-from-home life that we are all now living, I often find myself reminiscing about the many rich cultural experiences I have enjoyed over the years during my travels. Although my cultural travel nostalgia encompasses many pleasurable memories,  for now it has a bittersweet edge. It seems likely that it will be many, many months before we may once again travel freely. Continue Reading Art, Travel, Nostalgia

As I have noted in prior posts (most recently here), one of the more interesting and noteworthy developments in recent years has been the rise of collective investor actions outside the United States. A recent white paper published by Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty SE in collaboration with the Clyde & Co law firm entitled “Collective Actions and Litigation Funding and the Impact on Securities Claims: A Global Snapshot” takes a detailed look at the spread and development of collective investor actions – including, in at least some jurisdictions, securities class actions – against corporations and their directors and officers and the interrelation between this development and litigation funding. The report also includes a detailed picture of the status of collective actions and litigation funding in 28 different countries. The white paper can be found here. Continue Reading A “Snapshot” of the Global Rise of Collective Investor Actions

Stephen Reilly
Andrew Jones

Data breach class action lawsuits are already well-established in the United States, but are only developing elsewhere. In the following guest post, Stephen Reilly and Andrew Jones of Beale & Company Solicitors take a look at the possibilities and prospects for data breach class actions in the U.K. A version of this article previously was published as a Beale & Company client alert. I would like to thank Stephen and Andrew 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 Stephen and Andrew’s guest post. Continue Reading Guest Post: Data Breach Class Actions in the UK — What Next?

Francis Kean
John McCarrick

In the following guest post, Francis Kean and John McCarrick take a look at the state of play with respect to D&O insurance policy exclusions in light of the current market conditions, as well as the different approach to policy exclusions under U.S. and U.K. law. Francis is a Partner, Financial Lines, at McGill and Partners. John is a partner in the White & Williams law firm. I would like to thank Francis and John 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 Francis and John’s guest post. Continue Reading Guest Post: Thinking About D&O Coverage Exclusions

Corruption and bribery enforcement actions and criminal prosecutions have long been a source of follow-on civil actions, including in particular securities class action lawsuits, as I have noted in numerous prior posts on this site. Two recent securities class action lawsuit filings underscore the significance of this follow-on securities suit filing phenomenon and also highlight the seriousness that many of these kinds of claims can involve. Continue Reading Corruption Allegations Lead to Serious Follow-On Securities Suit Filings

Cybersecurity firm NortonLifeLock became the latest company to be hit with a shareholder derivative lawsuit alleging that, despite company statements about its  commitment to diversity and inclusion, the company’s board and senior management lacks racial diversity. The NortonLifeLock lawsuit follows after substantially similar lawsuits – filed by the same law firm – were previously filed against Oracle (about which refer here), Facebook (here), and Qualcomm (here). A copy of the August 5, 2020 lawsuit against NortonLifeLock’s board can be found here. Continue Reading NortonLifeLock Hit with Board Diversity Derivative Suit