The securities class action war is about far more than the height of the pleading hurdles plaintiffs must clear, the scorecard of motions to dismiss won and lost, or median settlement amounts. It is a fight for strategic positioning—about achieving a system of securities litigation that sets up one side or the other to win
Securities Class Action
Myths & Misconceptions of Biotech Securities Claims: An Analysis of Motion to Dismiss Results from 2005-2016
By Doug Greene, Genevieve York-Erwin, Michael Tomasulo
I. Introduction
Small, development stage biotech companies are widely considered to be attractive targets for securities actions given the inherent risks of the industry and the volatility of their stock prices. As a result, many of these companies have relatively limited D&O insurance options. But are…
Be Careful What You Wish For, Part II: Would Companies Be Better Off Without the Fraud-on-the-Market Doctrine?
The villain in the fight against securities class actions is the fraud-on-the-market presumption of reliance established by the U.S. Supreme Court in 1988 in Basic Inc. v. Levinson, 485 U.S. 224 (1988). Without Basic, the thinking goes, a plaintiff could not maintain a securities class action, and without securities class actions, executives could…
3 Key Securities Litigation Developments of 2016
Following is an article I wrote for Law360, which gave me permission to republish it here:
Among securities litigators, there is no consensus about the importance of developments in securities and corporate governance litigation. For some, a Supreme Court decision is always supreme. For others, a major change in a legal standard is the most…
Lessons Learned in London
Earlier this month, I spent a week in the birthplace of D&O insurance, London. In addition to moderating a panel at Advisen’s European Executive Risks Insights Conference, I met with many energetic and talented D&O insurance professionals, both veterans and rising stars, to discuss U.S. securities litigation and regulatory risks. Themes emerged on some key…
Are We Headed into a Perfect Storm of Securities Class Action Filings?
The history of securities litigation is marked by particular types of cases that come in waves:
- the IPO laddering cases, which involved more than 300 issuers and their underwriters;
- the Sarbanes-Oxley era “corporate scandal” cases, which involved massive litigation against Enron, WorldCom, Tyco, Adelphia, HealthSouth, and others;
- the mutual fund market timing cases;
- the stock
…
5 Wishes for Securities Litigation Defense: Greater Director Involvement in Securities Litigation Defense and D&O Insurance
One of my “5 Wishes for Securities Litigation Defense” (April 30, 2016 post) is greater involvement by boards of directors in decisions concerning D&O insurance and the defense of securities litigation, including defense-counsel selection. Far too often, directors cede these critical strategic decisions to management.
For most directors, securities litigation is a mysterious…
5 Wishes for Securities Litigation Defense: Effective Use of the Supreme Court’s Omnicare Decision
In this installment of the D&O Discourse series “5 Wishes for Securities Litigation Defense,” we discuss the third of five changes that would significantly improve securities litigation defense: to make the Supreme Court’s Omnicare decision a primary tool in the defense of securities class actions.
As a reminder, in Omnicare, Inc. v. Laborers…
5 Wishes for Securities Litigation Defense: Greater Insurer Involvement in Defense-Counsel Selection and Strategy
One of my “5 Wishes for Securities Litigation Defense” (April 30, 2016 post) is greater D&O insurer involvement in securities class action defense.
This simple step would have extensive benefits for public companies and their directors and officers. D&O insurers are repeat players in securities litigation, and they have the greatest economic interest…
5 Wishes for Securities Litigation Defense: A Defense-Counsel Interview Process in All Cases
One of my “5 Wishes for Securities Litigation Defense” (April 30, 2016 post) is to require an interview process for the selection of defense counsel in all cases.
When a public company purchases a significant good or service, it typically seeks competitive proposals. From coffee machines to architects, companies invite multiple vendors to…