The pace of federal court securities class action filings during 2018 was “the highest since the aftermath of the 2000 dot-com crash,” according to a recent report from NERA Economic Consulting. Not only were the filings during the year at significantly elevated levels, but the filings “accelerated over the second half of the year, with the fourth quarter being one of the busiest on record.” As noteworthy as the filing trends are, the elevated filing pace “masked fundamental changes in the filing characteristics,” including the shift toward significantly higher amounts of investor losses. Average and median settlement levels also jumped significantly during the year, compared to the year prior. The January 29, 2019 report, entitled “Recent Trends in Securities Class Action Litigation: 2018 Full-Year Review” can be found here. NERA Economic Consulting’s January 29, 2019 press release about the report can be found here. My analysis of the 2018 federal court securities class action lawsuit filings can be found here.
Continue Reading NERA Economic Consulting: Securities Suit Filings at Highest Level in Years
securities settlement trends
ISS Releases Updated Top 100 U.S. Securities Suit Settlements List
Prior observers have already noted that in 2017 the value of securities class action lawsuit settlements plunged to lows not seen in years, largely due to from a shortage of large or even moderate settlements. These observations about the lack of larger settlement are underscored by the latest large securities suit settlement report from ISS Securities Class Action Services (ISS). In its annual report, entitled “The Top 100 U.S. Class Action Settlements of All Time (as of December 31, 2017)” (here), ISS reports that only two securities class action lawsuit settlements approved during 2017 were large enough to make the Top 100 list. The report has a number of other interesting observations about securities suit settlements as well.
Continue Reading ISS Releases Updated Top 100 U.S. Securities Suit Settlements List