If today’s filings are any indication, a huge wave of Madoff victim lawsuits could be coming. Madoff investors were quick to sue Madoff and his firm, with the first complaint filed last Friday (as noted here). But with Madoff’s firm in liquidation and the money likely long gone, investors who lost money as a
Subprime Securities Suit against Bank Dismissed Without Prejudice
In the latest preliminary ruling in a subprime or credit crisis-related securities lawsuit, Southern District of Florida Judge Ursula Ungaro in a December 11, 2008 opinion (here) granted the defendants’ motion to dismiss the plaintiffs’ complaint, with leave to amend.
Background
BankAtlantic Bancorp is a bank holding company that offers consumer and
Forum Selection and ’33 Act Subprime Lawsuits
As I have previously noted (here), one of the significant procedural developments in the subprime securities litigation wave has been the plaintiffs’ apparent interest in pursuing ’33 Act subprime-related lawsuits in state court. Section 22(a) of the ’33 Act expressly provides that the federal court’s jurisdiction for ’33 Act lawsuits is "concurrent with
Knock Yourselves Out, Investors
All litigants face the challenge of managing lawsuit expenses and exposures. The Reserve Primary Fund investor litigation defendants have crafted a novel approach to addressing these challenges – they apparently intend to finance their defense as well as any indemnity out of funds due to investors — that is, the funds of the very people on whose
“New Wave” Credit Crisis Lawsuit with Subprime Overtones
In a recent post (here), I described the "new wave" of credit crisis lawsuits, in which the companies involved were damaged by their exposures to other companies experiencing credit crisis losses. The latest of these new wave lawsuits to be filed involves the Federal Agricultural Mortgage Corporation, or "Farmer Mac" as it
Dismissal Denied in New Century Subprime Lawsuit
Following closely on the heels of the denial of the motion to dismiss in the Countrywide case earlier this week (about which refer here), on December 3, 2008, Judge Dean Pregerson of the Central District of California issued an opinion (here) denying the defendants’ motions to dismiss in the New Century Financial
The Evolving Credit Crisis Litigation Wave
In an earlier post (here), I suggested that the credit crisis litigation wave had reached an inflection point, and in subsequent posts, I identified additional "new wave" credit crisis lawsuits.
The exact contours of this "new wave" is admittedly amorphous, but the basic concept is that it involves, first, companies that
Republication: Countrywide Securities Suit Dismissal Motions Substantially Denied
In order to remedy the faulty link in the email distribution notice for today’s post about the Countrywide subprime-related securities class action lawsuit, I have republished the post, which can be found here.
I apologize for any inconvenience that the faulty link in the prior email may have caused.
Countrywide Securities Suit Dismissal Motions Substantially Denied
On December 1, 2008, in a massive, detailed 112-page opinion (in three parts, here, here and here), Central District of California District Judge Mariana R. Pfaelzer substantially denied the defendants’ motions to dismiss the Countrywide subprime-related securities class action lawsuit.
Background regarding the case can be found here. The consolidated amended
Subprime Litigation Targets: Rating Agencies, Auditing Firms?
The subprime scapegoating process has resulted in a round up of the usual suspects, including directors and officers of publicly traded companies. But among other targets many aggrieved parties seem particularly keen to blame in the subprime debacle are the rating agencies.
In prior posts (most recently here), I have noted the securities claims