In any discussion these days of emerging directors’ and officers’ risks, the conversation inevitably turns to the topic of Artificial Intelligence (AI). There is a general perception that while AI presents significant opportunities, it also involves significant liability risks. The contours of the risk that AI represents have yet to develop, largely because the claims have yet to emerge. That is, until now.

Earlier this week, a plaintiff shareholder filed a securities class action lawsuit against the AI-enabled software platform company, Innodata. The plaintiff claims the company misrepresented the extent to which the company’s products and services actually employ AI technology and also the extent of the company’s investment in AI. As discussed further below, as far as I know, this case represents the first AI-related securities class action lawsuit to be filed. A copy of the plaintiff’s February 21, 2024, complaint can be found here.Continue Reading First AI-Related Securities Suit Filed

I have been writing this blog for a long time now, and the one thing that I know from the experience is that there is always something new. The latest novelty to develop is the emergence of class action litigation related to employers’ alleged violation of statutorily mandated pay range disclosure requirements. Several states, including the state of Washington, have enacted laws requiring the disclosure in job postings of salary or wage ranges. Class action plaintiffs’ attorneys are quickly targeting employers for alleged violations of these laws, with an at least theoretical potential for massive damage awards. As discussed below, this newly and quickly emerging class of litigation could present some interesting insurance questions. An October 17, 2023, memo from the Ogletree Deakins law firm discussing the new statutory requirements and emerging litigation can be found here.Continue Reading Emerging Pay Range Disclosure Class Action Suits and Related Insurance Issues

I have long thought that privacy-related issues represent one of the important emerging areas of D&O liability exposure. One case that I thought represented an example of this emerging risk was the securities class action lawsuit brought against Facebook related to the Cambridge Analytica user data privacy scandal. However, when the court granted the motion to dismiss in the case, the relevance of the Cambridge Analytica case to the discussion of privacy-related issues seemed diminished. But the appellate court has now reversed in part the lower court’s dismissal, restoring the relevance of the case to the privacy-related discussion and highlighting the importance of privacy concerns as an area of emerging D&O liability risk. The Ninth Circuit’s October 18, 2023, opinion in the case can be found here.Continue Reading Ninth Circuit Revives in Part Facebook Privacy-Related Securities Suit

In the following guest post, Tristan Hall, Andrew Milne, and Emma Boulding of the CMS Cameron McKenna Nabarro Olswang LLP law firm take a look at the new UK Pension Schemes Act, and in particular review the Act’s liability provisions and D&O insurance implications. I would like to thank the authors 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 publish a guest post. Here is the authors’ article.
Continue Reading Guest Post: New Pensions Risks for UK Directors

On March 10, 2020, as part of a Professional Liability Underwriting Society (PLUS) series of recorded discussions on the possible professional liability insurance implications of the COVID-19 Coronavirus outbreak, I participated in a short conversation on the viral outbreak’s D&O insurance implications. Joining me for the conversation were my good friends Carl Metzger of the

In the following guest post, Tristan Hall, Andrew Milne, and Emma Boulding of the CMS Cameron McKenna Nabarro Olswang LLP law firm take a look at the increased risks to directors and officers in the U.K. for non-compliance with employer pension schemes, as well as the implications of those increased risks for D&O insurance purposes. I would like to thank the authors for their willingness to allow 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 the authors’ article.
Continue Reading Guest Post: Stronger UK Pensions Regulator: Risks for Directors and Officers

The world of directors’ and officers’ liability is always dynamic, but 2017 was a particularly eventful year in the D&O liability arena. The year’s many developments have significant implications for what may lie ahead in 2018 – and possibly for years to come. I have set out below the Top Ten D&O stories of 2017, with an eye to these future possibilities.
Continue Reading Top Ten D&O Stories of 2017