Securities Class Action Trends Through the 3rd Quarter

The scope of securities class action lawsuit filings continued to expand through the third quarter of 2011, with a concentration on two areas in particular. The two most significant factors affecting securities class action litigation were merger-related lawsuits and lawsuits involving U.S.-listed Chinese companies. There were 154 federal securities lawsuits filed through the end of September, and over half of those involved mergers and Chinese companies listed in the U.S., according to Kevin LaCroix of the D&O Diary.

Another interesting trend highlights the diversity of the types of organizations that are involved in securities litigations. While recent years have seen lawsuits concentrated in the financial industry, companies associated with close to 100 different industries (according to Standard Industrial Classification, or SIC) have seen litigation pursued against them through the third quarter of this year. The industries with the largest number of securities lawsuit filings include semiconductor and related devices, prepackaged software, pharmaceutical preparations, and crude petroleum and natural gas.

Through the end of September of this year, federal securities class actions have been pursued in 45 different federal district courts. Interestingly, two specific courts have accounted for more than half of the overall securities class action filings. Those courts are the Southern District of New York and the Central District of California. This trend is supported by the increase in non-U.S. companies, with the majority of those lawsuits involving U.S.-listed Chinese companies.

As the instances of securities class action litigations continue to build, it becomes increasingly important to have a reliable source for tracking and filing for each lawsuit. Every case that is missed or is incorrectly filed for will result in forfeited recovery dollars for your firm. By partnering with Financial Recovery Technologies (FRT), you can rest assured that you are receiving the most comprehensive range of securities class action filing services available.

It is not too late to get a grasp on securities class actions. Contact FRT today to find out more about our proprietary technology platform and processes that  will help ensure your firm recovers all the settlement funds that you are entitled to receive.

Read Kevin LaCroix’s article for a more complete breakdown of securities class action trends.

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