Non-U.S. Issuers Targeted in Securities Class Action Lawsuits Filed in the U.S. - 2018 Review

 
April 09, 2019

Despite being headquartered abroad – and in some cases having a minimal connection with the United States – companies based outside the U.S. have still become targets in securities class actions filed in the U.S., even when the crux of the allegations occurs outside the country.

Dechert report on non-U.S. issuers targeted in securities class action lawsuits

Although 2018 saw a slight decrease in securities class action litigation on the whole, non-U.S. issuers — those companies with headquarters located outside of the U.S. — were popular targets of such suits.

Non-U.S. issuers should therefore take heed of last year’s decisions and securities class action filings to ensure they are aware of recent trends and to take steps to reduce and mitigate risks associated with such suits.

In 2018, plaintiffs filed a total of 54 class action securities lawsuits against non-U.S. issuers.

For details on 2019, read our most recent non-U.S. issuers report.

Circuit court cases

Circuit Courts Where the Majority of Lawsuits Were Filed

Allegations in lawsuits involving non-US issuers

The Lawsuits Alleged Misrepresentations Involving

Many of the complaints filed in 2018 allege misrepresentations regarding transactions including mergers and acquisitions, takeovers, proposed sales and IPOs. In addition, there were groups of cases alleging misrepresentations regarding business practices and operations, accounting, and bribery.
 

How many suits were filed

Number of Suits Filed Against Companies Headquartered In

The suits covered a diverse range of industries. Non-U.S. companies in the software and programming industry had the most suits filed against them (four); all of these companies were headquartered in China.

In addition, in 2018 and early 2019, courts continued the trend of issuing a number of dispositive securities fraud decisions.

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