Sky Blog
The legal world witnessed a riveting face-off last week as the Supreme Court delved into the intricacies of SEC v. Jarkesy. The case, stemming from a divided opinion by the Fifth Circuit in May 2022, challenges the constitutionality of …
Corporate law’s trial of the century was set to begin on October 17, 2022, in a small Wilmington, Delaware courtroom. Twitter v. Musk had it all. Celebrity. The world’s richest person. A product that helped foment revolutions around the world …
The end is in sight for New York Attorney General Letitia James’ suit against Donald Trump, but the most important questions have still not been posed or addressed. Indeed, much has proceeded in the reverse of the usual order. The …
Within a month, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear Harrington v. Purdue Pharma, L.P.,[1] a case that (i) could radically change the potential for bankruptcy to serve as the preferred mechanism for corporations seeking to resolve mass torts, …
In contrast to class actions in the United States, the general principle in litigation abroad is that the loser pays the winner’s costs. This concept is known as “adverse costs,” and the risk of paying these costs can be daunting …
Many academics, managers, lawyers, and others believe that nonmeritorious securities fraud class actions – those that will be dismissed or settled for nuisance amounts – damage corporate reputations. For example, litigation public relations experts claim that individuals adopt a “guilty …
On August 24, 2023, the Second Circuit affirmed the dismissal of state-law securities claims in Kirschner v. JP Morgan Chase,[1] concluding that the plaintiff failed to adequately plead that the syndicated term loans at issue were securities. This …
In a recent post on the Harvard Law School Forum on Corporate Governance, three partners at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP give practical advice to companies in preparing for and responding to a short attack. With respect …
During my recent visit to Columbia Law School, Professor John Coffee shared with me a draft of a short article that later appeared in the New York Law Journal.[1] Coffee’s article assessed the prospects in the U.S. Supreme …
On August 10, 2023, the Second Circuit handed down its highly anticipated decision in Arkansas Teacher Retirement System v. Goldman Sachs Group, Inc.[1] The court reversed the district court’s decision to certify a class action and remanded with …
On July 31, U.S. District Judge Jed Rakoff in New York decided a case with significant implications for how and even whether the Securities and Exchange Commission can regulate cryptocurrencies as a security. His decision contrasts sharply with a ruling …
As was true last year, the recently completed Supreme Court Term was marked by several high-profile and contentious decisions in which a conservative 6-to-3 majority, for example, ended race-conscious affirmative action in higher education, scuttled President Biden’s student debt relief …
On June 27, 2023, the U.S. Supreme Court voted 5-4 in Mallory v. Norfolk Southern Railway Co. to uphold a Pennsylvania law that requires out-of-state corporations that register to do business in Pennsylvania to consent to be sued there in …
On June 1, the Ninth Circuit en banc in Lee v. Fisher issued a consequential decision calling into question the scope of the implied right of action recognized by J.I. Case Co. v. Borak and creating a stark split with …
On June 1, 2023, the Ninth Circuit held en banc that a forum selection clause requiring all derivative claims to be brought in Delaware state court—including federal securities claims that can only be maintained in federal court—is enforceable and requires …
Audit firms’ risk of being sued has historically been an important factor driving audit quality and firm valuation in U.S. capital markets. Investors have traditionally targeted auditors in class action suits as “deep pockets” with a greater ability to pay …
On June 1, 2023, the Supreme Court unanimously held in Slack Technologies v. Pirani that Section 11 of the Securities Act of 1933 requires plaintiffs to plead and prove that they bought shares registered under the registration statement they claim …
Investors’ $1 billion tentative settlement – a Top 20 settlement of all time if approved – comes in the wake of years of scandal and resolves allegations that the bank concealed its inability to clean up its act. Prior scandals …
The United States legal system is immensely complex. There are state courts and federal courts, state statutes and federal statutes, state common law and federal common law. When I imagine a foreign lawyer trying to explain this system to a
The Supreme Court has made it easier to challenge the constitutionality of administrative tribunals housed at federal agencies. On April 14, 2023, the Court unanimously held in Axon Enterprise, Inc. v. Federal Trade Commission that parties subject to enforcement actions …