Concerning trends for asset managers continued apace in 2020, as did efforts in courtrooms, legislatures and boardrooms to protect the industry’s underbelly.

In a recent Delaware Court of Chancery decision, stockholders of Gilead Sciences, Inc. successfully obtained attorneys’ fees after prevailing in a books and records action against the company. 

The media, SEC and public have increased their focus recently on trading by company executives through so-called Rule 10b5-1 plans, which continues to be a problem for public companies, despite a downtick in insider trading cases filed by the SEC last year.  The interest has been generated, in part, by an academic paper, which spurred the SEC and Congress to reconsider the rules around trading plans.

An academic paper published in June 2021 highlights the important role of private stockholder litigation and plaintiff lawyers in protecting the rights of shareholders and regulating the financial markets.

Morris Kandinov LLP was part of a team of lawyers that secured a favorable settlement for GCI Liberty Inc. stockholders in connection with its merger with Liberty Broadband Corp.

A Massachusetts Superior Court decision in March 2021 reaffirms the significant contractual, state law, and federal law protections over fund shareholder voting rights.

Morris Kandinov LLP has filed a derivative action on behalf of Granite Construction Inc. following the revelation of over $338 million in project cost overruns that were concealed from investors in multiple major construction contracts between 2017 and 2019.

This article addresses the perception that every corporate trauma constitutes securities fraud, and that U.S. companies have been overwhelmed by securities actions in recent years. We don’t think the evidence supports that conclusion.

Fund directors have done little to obtain value for shareholders in connection with mergers of asset management companies, despite having ample leverage and opportunity.

Morris Kandinov LLP (“MoKa”) announced today that it began operations as a law firm dedicated to retail and institutional investors. The firm offers four practice areas: (i) corporate governance litigation; (ii) securities class actions; (iii) asset management litigation; and (iv) direct actions on behalf of institutions.