On June 23, 2014, the U.S. Supreme Court released its long-awaited decision in Halliburton Co. v. Erica P. John Fund, in which the Court had taken up the question whether or not to set aside the presumption of reliance based on the fraud on the market theory that the Court first recognized in its
Second Circuit Vacates Judge Rakoff’s Rejection of SEC’s Citigroup Settlement
On June 4, 2014, in a long-awaited but not unexpected opinion (here), the Second Circuit ruled that Southern District of New York Judge Jed Rakoff had improperly rejected the $285 million settlement of the SEC’s enforcement action against Citigroup. Because the case involved the question of whether or not parties may enter into
Some Things to Think About While We Await the Supreme Court’s Decision in Halliburton
The U.S Supreme Court did not issue its long-awaited decision in the Halliburton case yesterday and so it looks as if we will have to wait a little while longer to find out whether or not the Court will throw out the fraud on the market theory. The Court will for sure release its opinion
Applying Morrison, Second Circuit Affirms UBS Credit Crisis Securities Suit Dismissal
After the U.S. Supreme Court issued its opinion in Morrison v. National Australia Bank, the plaintiffs’ lawyers developed a number of theories to try to circumvent Morrison to assert claims under the U.S. securities laws on behalf of investors who purchased their shares in the defendant foreign company on a foreign exchange. These theories
Cornerstone Research Releases 2013 Analysis of Securities Suits Involving Accounting Allegations
Though the number of securities class action lawsuit containing accounting allegations remained essentially the same in 2013 compared to 2012, the market capitalization losses associated with the 2013 suits were more than double the losses associated with the 2012 suits, according to a new report from Cornerstone Research. The report contains a brief analysis of
Second Circuit Reinstates Barclays Libor Scandal Securities Suit
While claimants continue to fie private civil actions seeking to recover damages they claim to have sustained as a result of the Libor manipulation scandal, the fact is that at least up to this point, the plaintiffs have not fared particularly well in the Libor-related civil litigation.
As noted here, on March 29, 2013,
Advisen Releases First Quarter 2014 Corporate and Securities Litigation Report
Overall Filings of corporate and securities lawsuits during the first quarter of 2014 were at their lowest levels since before the financial crisis, according to the latest report from Advisen, the insurance information firm. The April 2014 report, which is entitled “D&O Claims Trends: 2014,” can be found here. As discussed below, the report
Cornerstone Research Releases 2013 Securities Class Action Settlements Analysis
Owing to a number of larger settlements, the average securities class action settlement amount in 2013 rose, while at the same time the media settlement amount declined, according to a study of the securities suit settlements from Cornerstone Research. The study also reports that the number of settlements and the aggregate dollar value of all
Securities Suit Filing Trends: More About IPOs and Investigative Follow-On Actions
Two securities suit filing trends that emerged during 2013 were the filing of securities class action lawsuits against companies that had recently completed IPOs (about which refer here) and the filing of securities suits in the wake of investigative or regulatory actions (as discussed here). Based on the recent filings, it appears that
U.S. Supreme Court Takes Up Yet Another Securities Case: To Support a Section 11 Claim, Must an Opinion Be Subjectively False?
As if it were not enough that the Court is already considering a case that could change the face of securities class actions (that is, the Halliburton case, which will be argued this week), the U.S. Supreme Court has now agreed to take up yet another securities case.
In a March 3, 2014 order