geopolitical risk

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As the Trump administration has launched, postponed, reinstated, and negotiated its evolving tariff policies, companies have been forced to deal with a changing and unpredictable business environment. As I have previously discussed, these changing circumstances not only have implications for companies’ business operations and financial results, they also have implications for companies’ potential liability exposures as well. One important area of tariff-related potential liability has to do with companies’ disclosures – that is, what the companies are saying about the impact of the tariffs on their operations and financial results.Continue Reading Tariffs and Disclosures: Corporate Risks in a Global Trade War

In my recent round-up of the top D&O stories of 2024, I noted as one of the key current issues the emergence of geopolitical issues as a source of D&O risk. Among other geopolitical concerns I speculated might contribute to this risk are anti-money laundering (AML) laws. Earlier this month, in the latest example of how AML issues can translate into a D&O claim, a plaintiff shareholder filed a securities class action lawsuit against the money transfer technology company Block and certain of its executives, based on allegations that the company’s failure to maintain basic AML protocols had created a “haven for criminal and illicit activities,” allegedly contrary to the company’s representations. A copy of the January 17, 2025, complaint can be found here.Continue Reading Alleged Anti-Money Laundering Law Violations Leads to Securities Lawsuit

The directors’ and officers’ liability environment is always changing, but 2023 was a particularly eventful year, with important consequences for the D&O insurance marketplace. The past year’s many developments also have significant implications for what may lie ahead in 2024 – and possibly for years to come.  I have set out below the Top Ten D&O Stories of 2023, with a focus on future implications. Please note that on Thursday, January 11, 2024 at 11:00 AM EST, my colleagues Marissa Streckfus, Chris Bertola, and I will be conducting a free, hour-long webinar in which we will discuss The Top Ten D&O Stories of 2023. Registration for the webinar can be found here. I hope you can join us for the webinar.Continue Reading The Top Ten Stories in D&O of 2023

Here at The D&O Diary, we cover the liabilities of corporate directors and officers. Geopolitical concerns are not typically part of our beat. But as we all finish up the year and get ready to start 2024, geopolitical concerns are necessarily part of what we are worried about in the current climate. That is true as a general matter and within the specific context of this blog; as the evidence has shown this year, geopolitical concerns have translated into corporate and securities lawsuits, and there is plenty to worry about for next year as well.Continue Reading Geopolitical Issues and D&O Risk Exposure

One factor that contributed significantly to the total number of securities class action lawsuits filed in 2021 and 2022 was the proliferation of SPAC-related securities suit filings. Although diminished in number this year relative to the two prior years, and while the filing pace has declined as the year has progressed, SPAC-related securities suits continue to be filed in 2023. In the latest example of this continuing trend, last week a plaintiff shareholder filed a securities suit against the executives and sponsor of a SPAC that merged with a health monitoring technology company that later went bankrupt. The named defendants include officers of the bankrupt company. While the suit is interesting as an example of the continuing threat of SPAC-related litigation, it may be even more important as an illustration of the way that geopolitical risk increasingly can translate into securities litigation.Continue Reading SPAC-Related Suit Shows How Geopolitical Risk Can Translate into Securities Litigation

Earlier this year, three of the largest banks failed in a sequence of events that was dubbed the Banking Crisis of 2023. With the passage of time, fears that the three failures could foreshadow further failures and deeper woes seemingly subsided, though a wave of banking institution downgrades in August 2023 briefly rekindled concerns. More recently, things have been quiet. Does that mean it is time to sound the all-clear signal? Perhaps, but there are signs out there suggesting continued vigilance may be in order.Continue Reading Checking in on the 2023 Banking Crisis