A new report by Cornerstone Research shows that total settlement dollars in securities class action lawsuits reached a 16-year low in 2014. The report found total settlements dropped to $1.1 billion, from $4.8 billion in 2013, primarily due to a lack of large cases.

According to the report, "Securities Class Action Settlements – 2014 Review and Analysis," the number of settlements was little changed last year at 63.

The largest settlement in 2014 was a case involving Massey Energy Co., whose parent company agreed to pay shareholders $265 million to settle a class action alleging that Massey violated securities laws by misrepresenting its safety record. Stock prices fell after a 2010 explosion in a West Virginia mine killed 29 miners.

Complete your profile to continue reading and get FREE access to Treasury & Risk, part of your ALM digital membership.

Your access to unlimited Treasury & Risk content isn’t changing.
Once you are an ALM digital member, you’ll receive:

  • Thought leadership on regulatory changes, economic trends, corporate success stories, and tactical solutions for treasurers, CFOs, risk managers, controllers, and other finance professionals
  • Informative weekly newsletter featuring news, analysis, real-world case studies, and other critical content
  • Educational webcasts, white papers, and ebooks from industry thought leaders
  • Critical coverage of the employee benefits and financial advisory markets on our other ALM sites, PropertyCasualty360 and ThinkAdvisor
NOT FOR REPRINT

© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.