Key Takeaways
- Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals reaffirms that comparison of advisory fees to subadvisory fees is “inapt” under Jones v. Harris Assocs., relying on undisputed evidence of differences in services and...more
4/3/2020
/ Appeals ,
Breach of Duty ,
Excessive Fees ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Gartenberg Factors ,
Investment Adviser ,
Mutual Funds ,
Reaffirmation ,
Section 36(b) ,
Shareholder Litigation ,
Summary Judgment
Under Section 413(2) of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (“ERISA”), ERISA’s three-year statute of limitations for fiduciary breaches and certain other violations starts to run when “the plaintiff had actual...more
3/6/2020
/ Actual or Constructive Knowledge ,
Appeals ,
Breach of Duty ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Intel Corp. Investment Policy Committee v. Sulyma ,
Material Disclosures ,
Question of Fact ,
Reaffirmation ,
Retirement Plan ,
Retirement Plan Beneficiaries ,
Reversal ,
SCOTUS ,
Split of Authority ,
Statute of Limitations ,
Summary Judgment
In a ruling of potential importance for investment advisers and directors/trustees of registered investment companies, a California appellate court affirmed a lower court ruling on January 23, 2020 in Garth Jensen, et al. v....more
2/19/2020
/ Appeals ,
Asset Tracing ,
Board of Directors ,
ETFs ,
False Statements ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Advisers Act of 1940 ,
Judgment on the Pleadings ,
Misleading Statements ,
Offering Statements ,
Registered Investment Companies (RICs) ,
Registration Statement ,
Retail Investors ,
Secondary Markets ,
Securities Act of 1933 ,
Securities Fraud ,
Securities Litigation ,
Standing ,
Trustees
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, in disagreeing with the Courts of Appeals for the Third and Ninth Circuits, ruled on August 5, 2019 in Oxford University Bank v. Lansuppe Feeder, Inc. that a private right of...more
9/10/2019
/ Appeals ,
Breach of Contract ,
Equitable Relief ,
Failure to Report ,
Investment Company Act of 1940 ,
Investment Funds ,
Investors ,
Junior Lenders ,
Liquidation ,
Mutual Funds ,
Noteholders ,
Private Right of Action ,
Rescission ,
Section 47(b) ,
Senior Investors ,
Split of Authority ,
Summary Judgment ,
Trusts
Within recent weeks, there have been three noteworthy court rulings in pending Section 36(b) cases, with one court granting a motion to dismiss and two different courts fully granting substantive motions for summary judgment....more
3/29/2018
/ Appeals ,
Arms Length Transactions ,
Dismissals ,
Excessive Fees ,
Failure To State A Claim ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Gartenberg Factors ,
Genuine Issue of Material Fact ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Company Act of 1940 ,
Motion for Summary Judgment ,
Motion to Dismiss ,
Mutual Funds ,
Standard of Review
The U.S. mutual fund industry is poised to see significant developments in the ongoing wave of Section 36(b) “excessive fee” litigation. Days apart in August, the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the grant of summary...more
10/7/2015
/ Appeals ,
Arms Length Transactions ,
Board Deferance ,
Board of Directors ,
Excessive Fees ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Financial Adviser ,
Gartenberg Factors ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Company Act of 1940 ,
Mutual Funds ,
Private Right of Action ,
SCOTUS ,
Section 36(b) ,
Shareholders ,
Summary Judgment