The history of securities and corporate governance litigation is full of wishes about the law that we later regret (or will), or are happy were not granted. Many of these are not obvious—and some will surprise people. From certain case-by-case tactical decisions such as establishment of special litigation committees, to the (failed) attempt to abolish
Statements of Opinion
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…
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: 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…
5 Wishes for Securities Litigation Defense
I am committed to helping shape a system for securities litigation defense that helps directors and officers get through securities litigation safely and efficiently, without losing their serenity or dignity, and without facing any real risk of paying any personal funds.
But we are actually moving in the opposite direction of this goal, and unless…
Why I’m So Passionate about Omnicare
On March 24, 2015, the U.S. Supreme Court issued its opinion in Omnicare, Inc. v. Laborers Dist. Council Const. Industry Pension Fund, 135 S. Ct. 1318 (2015). My partner Claire Davis and I are publishing a forthcoming one-year anniversary article on Omnicare. In addition to discussing the lower courts’ application of the decision,…
5 Securities Litigation Issues to Watch in 2016
Following is an article we wrote for Law360, which gave us permission to republish it here:
The coming year promises to be a pivotal one in the world of securities and corporate governance litigation. In particular, there are five developing issues we are watching that have the greatest potential to significantly increase or decrease the…
Reform Act Report Card: The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act, 20 Years Later
In 2015, the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act* turned twenty years old.
Over my career as a securities litigator, I’ve seen both sides of the securities-litigation divide that the Reform Act created. In the first part of my career, I witnessed the figurative skid marks in front of courthouses, as lawyers raced to the courthouse…
Companies May Be Taking a Risk by Hiring Corporate Counsel to Defend Securities Class Actions
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 bid, evaluate their proposals, and choose one based on a combination of quality and cost. Yet companies named in a securities class action frequently fail to engage in a competitive…
Hey There Fellow Securities Defense Lawyers: Omnicare is GOOD for Us!
If correctly understood and applied, the Supreme Court’s decision in Omnicare, Inc. v. Laborers Dist. Council Const. Industry Pension Fund, 135 S. Ct. 1318 (2015), will allow corporate officers to speak more freely, without fear of unfair liability. And defendants will win more cases.
Yet I keep seeing commentary from defense lawyers saying that…