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
The year 2023 witnessed a recovery in the cryptocurrency and digital assets market corresponding with fewer crypto-related securities class action litigation actions than in 2022. Despite this decrease, the nature of the...more
As we close out 2023 and begin the first quarter of 2024, securities and derivative litigation continues to evolve. In this quarterly update, we examine trends in federal securities class action filings, which saw an uptick...more
2/20/2024
/ Banking Sector ,
Biotechnology ,
Class Action ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Derivatives ,
False Statements ,
Infrastructure ,
International Maritime Organization (IMO) ,
Investors ,
Japan ,
Life Sciences ,
Macquarie Infrastructure Corp v Moab Partners LP ,
Philip Morris ,
Private Actors ,
Private Right of Action ,
Regulation S-K ,
Rule 10(b) ,
SCOTUS ,
Securities ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Fraud ,
Special Purpose Acquisition Companies (SPACs)
Examine a major Ninth Circuit decision affirming dismissal of a Section 14(a) derivative action based on a forum-selection clause;
Highlight the Third Circuit’s adoption of the Omnicare standard for securities fraud claims;...more
7/24/2023
/ Books & Records ,
Capitalization ,
Class Action ,
Coinbase ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Delaware General Corporation Law ,
Derivative Suit ,
Disney ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Forum Selection ,
Mergers ,
Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) ,
Popular ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Exchange Act of 1934 ,
Securities Fraud ,
Securities Litigation ,
Shareholders ,
Waivers
In this edition of Dechert’s Securities & Derivative Litigation Quarterly Update, we:
Examine the first criminal insider trading prosecution based on a 10b5-1 trading plan;...more
5/15/2023
/ Class Action ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Derivatives ,
Enforcement ,
Fraud ,
Securities ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Fraud ,
Settlement ,
Special Purpose Acquisition Companies (SPACs) ,
Trading Plans
The 2022 decline in the cryptocurrency and digital assets market resulted in a year with more crypto securities class action litigation than any previous year. This article explores the 2022 crypto securities class action...more
3/30/2023
/ Class Action ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Crypto Exchanges ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Decentralized Finance (DeFi) ,
Digital Assets ,
Investors ,
Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) ,
Securities ,
Securities Act of 1933 ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Exchange Act of 1934
In 2022, there were 197 federal securities class actions filed, which is a slight drop from the 211 filings in 2021, and a significant drop from the over 400 filings in 2017, 2018, and 2019, and over 300 in 2020. There were...more
2/9/2023
/ Blockchain ,
Certiorari ,
Class Action ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Derivatives ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
SCOTUS ,
Securities Act of 1933 ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Exchange Act of 1934 ,
Securities Litigation ,
Settlement ,
Slack ,
Special Purpose Acquisition Companies (SPACs)
In 2022, there were 197 federal securities class actions filed, which is a 6.6% drop from the 211 filings in 2021, and a significant drop from the over 400 filings in 2017, 2018, and 2019, and over 300 in 2020. Despite a...more
2/7/2023
/ Blockchain ,
Certiorari ,
Class Action ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Derivatives ,
Enforcement ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Greenwashing ,
Litigation Strategies ,
SCOTUS ,
Securities ,
Securities Act of 1933 ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Fraud ,
Settlement ,
Special Purpose Acquisition Companies (SPACs)
In 2021, securities class actions declined compared to the year before, and were significantly less than the number of filings in the previous three years. According to statistics from the Stanford Law School Securities Class...more
As securities class actions are being filed at a slower pace over the past year, a few notable developments continued into the second quarter of 2021. In particular, the U.S Supreme Court clarified an important issue...more
For the first time in several years, securities fraud cases declined in 2020, largely due to the pandemic. However, we don’t expect this decrease to continue. Just three months into 2021, there are a number of issues trending...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
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
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 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