As I have previously noted on this blog, one recurring source of securities class action litigation exposure for publicly traded companies is the companies’ underlying environmental liabilities. In the latest example of this type of litigation, a plaintiff shareholder has now filed a securities suit against The Chemours Company, a chemical company that spun out … Continue Reading
At a time when litigation involving corporate disclosures regarding cybersecurity, privacy, and human resource practices and other hot topics dominate the discussion, potential corporate exposure arising from environmental liabilities and disclosures does not always receive the attention it deserves. However, as I have previously noted on this blog, environmental disclosures can and frequently are the … Continue Reading
For many years, I have been raising the possibility of climate change-related corporate and securities litigation. However, despite my best prognostication, the climate change-related corporate and securities lawsuits have basically failed to materialize – that is, until now. On November 7, 2016, investors filed a purported securities class action lawsuit in the Northern District of … Continue Reading
The question whether concerns about climate change-related disclosures might lead to regulatory enforcement actions or even liability claims has been around for some time, but though the concerns have remained, the regulatory actions and liability claims have not really materialized. However, in the past week, the service of a subpoena on Exxon Mobil Corp. by … Continue Reading
At a time when cyber liability and other hot topics dominate the discussion, potential corporate liability arising from environmental disclosures often does not receive the attention it should. However, as I have previously noted on this blog, environmental issues have been and remain an area on which plaintiffs’ lawyer have been focused. A recently filed … Continue Reading
In recent months, there have been a number of securities class action lawsuits filed based on alleged misrepresentations of the defendant company’s environmental compliance. On August 7, 2014, the securities suit filed against Exide Technologies and certain of its directors and officers based on the defendants’ allegedly misleading statements about the company’s compliance with environmental … Continue Reading
In an interesting July 31, 2014 opinion (here), the Second Circuit vacated the dismissal of the securities class action lawsuit that had been filed against JinkoSolar Holdings Co. Ltd, and certain of its directors and officers, as well as against its offering underwriters. This ruling will be of interest to many readers because it involves … Continue Reading
In a January 22, 2013 opinion (here), Southern District of New York Judge J. Paul Oetken has dismissed one of the many securities class action lawsuits that were filed against U.S.-listed Chinese companies in 2011. Though the primary interest in the case may be that it involves U.S. securities suit against a Chinese company, Jinkosolar … Continue Reading
According to papers filed in the Southern District of New York on August 3, 2012, the parties to the Tronox securities litigation have agreed to settle the case for a total of $37 million. As I noted at the time that this suit was first filed back in July 2009 (here), the case, which alleged … Continue Reading
On February 2, 2010, the SEC published its interpretive release providing guidance to public companies on the SEC’s existing disclosure requirements as they apply to climate change. The release can be found here. A February 4, 2010 memo from the Gibson Dunn law firm analyzing the SEC’s release can be found here. While the … Continue Reading
With the United Nations Climate Change Conference set to begin December 7, 2009 in Copenhagen, activists and observers are dialing up the volume both with calls for reform and with updated reports of the projected risks that global warming threatens. Among the long-standing initiatives advocates are now seeking to advance is the petition before the … Continue Reading
While I have long predicted (refer here) the possibility of litigation against directors and officers of public companies concerning global climate change-related disclosures, to date the lawsuits have not materialized. Which is not to say that there have not been relevant developments – to the contrary, there have been many, as discussed below. There just … Continue Reading
From time to time on this blog I try to draw generalizations from a variety of disparate claims as a way to identify emerging themes. However, a single recently filed securities class action manages to embody in a single complaint several themes I have previously tried to describe. The case in question is the … Continue Reading
The recent Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposal to find that greenhouse gases "contribute to air pollution that may endanger public health or welfare" is just the latest in a series of actions and events suggesting that climate change related issues could affect a large number of companies, in a variety of ways, including most specifically … Continue Reading
