Advisen Webinar: Quarterly D&O Claims Trends: Year-End Wrap-Up Sponsored by AIG
Tuesday, January 29, 2013 at 11am EST
Securities Lawsuit Trends: Class Actions & Beyond: Advisen analysts report on the frequency and severity of securities suits, including class actions, breach of fiduciary duty suits, regulatory actions and derivative actions, providing insights on emerging trends by suit type, allegation type and industries being targeted as defendants.
Register for this free one-hour webinar at: https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/501379345
Advisen Topical Report: Quarterly D&O Claims Trends: Year-End Wrap-Up Sponsored by AIG
New securities and business litigation filings and enforcement actions were down in 2012 as compared to 2011, although, in the aggregate, they were still elevated compared to prior years. The decrease in new events was evident in all major categories of suits and enforcement actions, including securities class action suits, securities fraud suits filed by regulators and state breach of fiduciary duty suits. In two important categories, securities class action suits and breach of fiduciary duty suits, new filings not only were below 2011 counts, but also were lower than 2010.
Not only was the number of new events lower, the number of settlements also fell. For securities class action suits and breach of fiduciary duty suits, the decreasing number of settlements was a continuation of a longer-term trend. Settlement values, however, tended to be higher. The average securities class action settlement, for example, jumped nearly 50 percent as compared to 2011.
This report sponsored by AIG also contains a special section on Foreign Corrupt Practice Act (FCPA) enforcement. The surge in enforcement activity of the prior several years let up in 2012, though the decrease in new enforcement actions is likely a short term phenomenon. While D&O policies typically provide only limited coverage for FCPA claims, insurers should be concerned about follow-on litigation that would likely trigger coverage under a D&O policy. Presently, between 20 percent and 30 percent of formal FCPA investigations spark a related shareholder derivative suit.
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