Last year marked an increase in federal securities class action filings, with plaintiffs filing 212 cases in 2023, up from 197 in 2022 and ending an overall decline in filings since 2019. Life sciences companies remained...more
In 2023, plaintiffs filed 33 securities class action lawsuits against non-U.S. issuers, down by one from the 34 filings in 2022. This number indicates a continued decline in non-U.S. issuer filings, since a recent high of 88...more
Corporations started inserting federal forum provisions in light of the decision of the United States Supreme Court in Cyan, Inc. v. Beaver County Employees Retirement Fund, 138 S. Ct. 1061 (“Cyan”) (2018), which reaffirmed...more
Event-driven litigation continues to fuel the rise of securities class actions against public companies, and that has certainly been the case with COVID-19 related litigation. Pandemic-related events have formed the basis for...more
12/2/2020
/ Chamber of Commerce ,
Class Action ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Cruise Ships ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Misleading Statements ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Popular ,
Publicly-Traded Companies ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Litigation
Key Takeaways -
Salzberg, et al. and Blue Apron Holdings, Inc., et al. v. Sciabacucchi, Case No. 346, 2019, 2020 WL 1280785 (Del. Mar. 18, 2020), is a landmark decision critically important to companies preparing...more
Striking a blow to employees who send communications at the behest of others, the Supreme Court held yesterday that those who “disseminate” false statements with the intent to defraud—even if they did not draft those...more
3/30/2019
/ Appeals ,
Corporate Officers ,
Directors ,
Enforcement Actions ,
False Statements ,
Fines ,
Intent to Defraud ,
Investment Banks ,
Lorenzo v SEC ,
Material Dissemination ,
Misleading Statements ,
Publicly-Traded Companies ,
Reaffirmation ,
Rule 10b-5 ,
SCOTUS ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Exchange Act ,
Securities Violations ,
Suspensions
Life sciences companies were popular targets of class action securities lawsuits in 2018.
In the most recent edition of our annual survey, Dechert litigators David H. Kistenbroker, Joni S. Jacobsen and Angela M. Liu examine...more
2/13/2019
/ Anti-Kickback Statute ,
Class Action ,
Clinical Trials ,
FDA Approval ,
Fraud ,
Life Sciences ,
Material Misstatements ,
Mismanagement ,
Misrepresentation ,
Popular ,
Risk Management ,
Risk Mitigation ,
Securities Fraud ,
Securities Litigation ,
Stock Drop Litigation ,
Surveys
2017 was a record year for class action securities litigation, and life sciences companies continued to be popular targets of such lawsuits. During 2017, plaintiffs filed a total of 88 class action securities lawsuits against...more
2/9/2018
/ Bribery ,
Class Action ,
FDA Approval ,
Insider Trading ,
Life Sciences ,
Misrepresentation ,
Motion to Dismiss ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Scienter ,
Securities Fraud ,
Stock Drop Litigation ,
Surveys
As securities markets become increasingly interconnected, multi- national public corporations continue to be a part of a significant sea change in the globalization of securities fraud litigation—a change that began with the...more
11/22/2017
/ Australia ,
Banks ,
Canada ,
Class Action ,
Collective Actions ,
Cross-Border Transactions ,
Extraterritoriality Rules ,
Foreign Issuers ,
Forum Shopping ,
Global Marketplace ,
India ,
International Litigation ,
Italy ,
Japan ,
Jurisdiction ,
Litigation Funding ,
Morrison v National Australia Bank ,
SCOTUS ,
Securities ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Exchange Act ,
Securities Litigation ,
Spain ,
Third-Party Relationships
Officers, directors, and underwriters frequently become targets of securities fraud litigation after a public offering. In a landmark case decided yesterday, the U.S. Supreme Court provides defendants with another tool to...more
6/28/2017
/ Board of Directors ,
CalPERS v ANZ Securities ,
Class Action ,
Corporate Officers ,
Equitable Tolling ,
Opt-Outs ,
Pension Funds ,
Public Offerings ,
SCOTUS ,
Section 11 ,
Section 13 ,
Securities Act ,
Securities Act of 1933 ,
Securities Fraud ,
Securities Litigation ,
Statute of Limitations ,
Statute of Repose ,
Underwriting
As popular targets for investor suits, officers and directors of public companies have another tool to defend against securities class actions, and specifically claims relating to the recording of goodwill. On May 5, 2017, in...more
Life sciences companies continued to be popular targets of securities fraud class action lawsuits filed in 2016, and prudent life sciences companies should take heed of the results of this year’s decisions. In 2016,...more
3/9/2017
/ Antitrust Violations ,
Class Action ,
Drug Pricing ,
False Statements ,
FDA Approval ,
Generic Drugs ,
Life Sciences ,
Material Misrepresentation ,
Omissions ,
Popular ,
Price-Fixing ,
Promotional Items ,
Risk Mitigation ,
Securities Fraud ,
Stock Drop Litigation
A closely-watched set of claims stemming back to the 2008 global financial crisis has settled for a massive €1.204 billion (US$1.3 billion), making it one of the highest settlements ever and ushering in a new era in the...more
3/21/2016
/ Bailout ,
Class Action ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Foreign Investment ,
International Litigation ,
Netherlands ,
Oil & Gas ,
Rule 10(b) ,
Securities Fraud ,
Securities Litigation ,
Settlement ,
Young Lawyers
In a decision with important implications for directors of public companies, the Delaware Supreme Court overturned two Chancery Court opinions and ruled that independent directors facing breach of duty of care claims arising...more
In a decision that has important implications for both plaintiffs and defendants in securities class actions, the Supreme Court of the United States in Halliburton Co. v. Erica P. John Fund, Inc. (Halliburton II), No. 13-317...more
With its recent decision in Westmoreland County Employee Retirement System v. Parkinson, et al., the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit has confirmed that the courts of the Seventh Circuit can be a...more
In a recent ruling, the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit concluded that certain related shareholder derivative suits arising out of a say-on-pay decision involving Pico Holdings, Inc. (the “Company”) were...more
The U.S. state of Delaware’s courts, particularly the Court of Chancery, are usually thought of as doughty protectors of shareholder rights. But some recent decisions have, in fact, narrowed such rights. Following close upon...more
The Delaware Supreme Court in Pyott v. Louisiana Municipal Police Employees’ Retirement System reversed on April 4 a controversial ruling by the Chancery Court that a California federal court’s dismissal with prejudice of a...more
4/17/2013
In Amgen Inc. v. Connecticut Retirement Plans and Trust Funds, No. 11-1085, 568 U.S. ___ (2013), decided on February 27, 2013, the Supreme Court of the United States affirmed the Ninth Circuit’s ruling that, in a case...more
Decisions regarding executive compensation fall squarely within the discretion of a public company’s board of directors. Recently, however, plaintiffs’ firms have been trying to invade the board’s purview by bringing...more