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Securities Class-Action Settlements at 14-Year Low
March 30, 2013
The number of securities class- action settlements fell to a 14-year low in 2012 while their average dollar value rose to an all-time high, a research study found. The 53 court-approved settlements reported last year represent a more than 45 percent decline from the 10-year average since 2002, and the average settlement increased to $54.7 million in 2012 from $21.6 million in 2011, Cornerstone Research concluded in a report released today. “Based on the volume of recent securities class...
March 30, 2013
The number of securities class- action settlements fell to a 14-year low in 2012 while their average dollar value rose to an all-time high, a research study found. The 53 court-approved settlements reported last year represent a more than 45 percent decline from the 10-year average since 2002, and the average settlement increased to $54.7 million in 2012 from $21.6 million in 2011, Cornerstone Research concluded in a report released today. “Based on the volume of recent securities class...
Landmark Survey Reveals Trends in Evolution of ADR
March 29, 2013
Disputing is pleased to announce a seven part series exploring the findings of Thomas Stipanowich and Ryan Lamare in their...
March 29, 2013
Disputing is pleased to announce a seven part series exploring the findings of Thomas Stipanowich and Ryan Lamare in their...
SCOTUS Further Refines Proof Standards For Class Certification
March 29, 2013
On March 27, 2013, the U.S. Supreme Court issued its long-awaited opinion in Comcast Corp. v. Behrend, addressing the quality of proof needed to satisfy Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23’s rigorous requirements for certifying a class. The federal circuit courts have taken diverse approaches as to whether and under what circumstances an expert’s testimony can be used to satisfy the requirement that common issues predominate. Some have refused to consider expert challenges at the certification...
March 29, 2013
On March 27, 2013, the U.S. Supreme Court issued its long-awaited opinion in Comcast Corp. v. Behrend, addressing the quality of proof needed to satisfy Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23’s rigorous requirements for certifying a class. The federal circuit courts have taken diverse approaches as to whether and under what circumstances an expert’s testimony can be used to satisfy the requirement that common issues predominate. Some have refused to consider expert challenges at the certification...
Top New York-Based Firms See Mostly Modest Growth
March 29, 2013
With demand for corporate work slack through most of the year and clients continuing to apply rate pressure, 12 elite Am Law 100 firms...
March 29, 2013
With demand for corporate work slack through most of the year and clients continuing to apply rate pressure, 12 elite Am Law 100 firms...
Diagnostic Thinking
March 29, 2013
Ranjay Gulati, Harvard Business School professor, saw firsthand what happens when professionals jump to conclusions and rush...
March 29, 2013
Ranjay Gulati, Harvard Business School professor, saw firsthand what happens when professionals jump to conclusions and rush...
ACC Ups Its Involvement in Outside Counsel Fee Fights
March 29, 2013
Usually fights over attorney fees remain between the company and its outside counsel, or the in-house and outside bars. But some...
March 29, 2013
Usually fights over attorney fees remain between the company and its outside counsel, or the in-house and outside bars. But some...
Early Case Assessment: Better Results from Better Information
March 29, 2013
No client likes spending money on litigation, and companies are no exception – but when litigation costs appear out of control and unpredictable, the problem gets even worse. Cost containment and predictability in litigation are the name of the game. But clients and their lawyers often differ on how to approach disputes, which tools are the most effective, and how involved in-house counsel should be in litigation. This 3-part series will explore two specific litigation management tools, Early...
March 29, 2013
No client likes spending money on litigation, and companies are no exception – but when litigation costs appear out of control and unpredictable, the problem gets even worse. Cost containment and predictability in litigation are the name of the game. But clients and their lawyers often differ on how to approach disputes, which tools are the most effective, and how involved in-house counsel should be in litigation. This 3-part series will explore two specific litigation management tools, Early...
‘Churn that bill, baby!’ email surfaces in fee dispute with DLA Piper
March 29, 2013
It all began with a corporate bankruptcy case. Retained by energy entrepreneur Adam H. Victor in April 2010 to prepare the Chapter 11 filing for one of his companies, DLA Piper ran up a hefty bill. And when Victor refused to pay it, the law firm sued him for $675,000. Victor defended aggressively, not only filing a counterclaim over what he alleged was a “sweeping practice of overbilling" on the megafirm's part but discovering some 250,000 pages of documents, according to the DealBook page...
March 29, 2013
It all began with a corporate bankruptcy case. Retained by energy entrepreneur Adam H. Victor in April 2010 to prepare the Chapter 11 filing for one of his companies, DLA Piper ran up a hefty bill. And when Victor refused to pay it, the law firm sued him for $675,000. Victor defended aggressively, not only filing a counterclaim over what he alleged was a “sweeping practice of overbilling" on the megafirm's part but discovering some 250,000 pages of documents, according to the DealBook page...
Informal Agreement Does Not Mean Done Deal
March 29, 2013
An email exchange between attorneys for an author and a movie producer proposing terms of a deal, where one party says “Let me know if this is okay and we’ll send paperwork” and the other responds “Done . . . thanks!” does not create a binding contract sufficient to transfer a copyright, according to the California Court of Appeals.MVP Entertainment, Inc. v. Frost [PDF]. The case interprets Section 204 of the Copyright Act, which governs transfers of copyright ownership. MVP sought...
March 29, 2013
An email exchange between attorneys for an author and a movie producer proposing terms of a deal, where one party says “Let me know if this is okay and we’ll send paperwork” and the other responds “Done . . . thanks!” does not create a binding contract sufficient to transfer a copyright, according to the California Court of Appeals.MVP Entertainment, Inc. v. Frost [PDF]. The case interprets Section 204 of the Copyright Act, which governs transfers of copyright ownership. MVP sought...
Apology Fails in DLA Piper Legal Billing Scandal
March 28, 2013
The billable hour is the monster inside the law business. Thanks to dogged discovery efforts by a former DLA Piper client, the monster has broken out of its lair and is standing, somewhat mortified but proud and unbowed, in the media’s cross-hairs. If you’ve been on vacation, here are billing emails discovered in a lawsuit between (depending on your side of the case) a deadbeat client and an upstanding law firm or a virtuous businessman and his rapacious lawyers. “I hear we are already...
March 28, 2013
The billable hour is the monster inside the law business. Thanks to dogged discovery efforts by a former DLA Piper client, the monster has broken out of its lair and is standing, somewhat mortified but proud and unbowed, in the media’s cross-hairs. If you’ve been on vacation, here are billing emails discovered in a lawsuit between (depending on your side of the case) a deadbeat client and an upstanding law firm or a virtuous businessman and his rapacious lawyers. “I hear we are already...
