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Practice Tip: Class Actions. Where's the Beef?
Product liability practitioners will recall that in 2005 the Class Action Fairness Act (CAFA) was enacted in response to a Congressional finding that class action settlements may too often result in a monetary windfall to class counsel, while leaving class members with awards of little or no value. Despite the fact that product liability class action settlements are subject to judicial scrutiny to ensure substantive and procedural fairness, there is surprisingly little data available regarding how much cash relief class members actually receive post-settlement. The scant literature that is available on post-settlement distributions reveals that many class actions are still being settled on terms that often benefit the lawyers involved, while not delivering meaningful compensation to the class members.
In 2012, the U.S. House of Representatives' Subcommittee on the Constitution investigated the post-CAFA world and demonstrated that, although CAFA has been a success in certain respects, the legislation has not cured some of the continuing failings in the class action system. Specifically, the testimony in Washington confirmed what any product liability lawyer who handles class actions already knew ' the law has not put an end to the recurring problem that counsel are too often the only winners in the class action system.
The DOJ's Corporate Enforcement Policy: One Year Later
The DOJ's Criminal Division issued three declinations since the issuance of the revised CEP a year ago. Review of these cases gives insight into DOJ's implementation of the new policy in practice.
The DOJ's New Parameters for Evaluating Corporate Compliance Programs
The parameters set forth in the DOJ's memorandum have implications not only for the government's evaluation of compliance programs in the context of criminal charging decisions, but also for how defense counsel structure their conference-room advocacy seeking declinations or lesser sanctions in both criminal and civil investigations.
Use of Deferred Prosecution Agreements In White Collar Investigations
This article discusses the practical and policy reasons for the use of DPAs and NPAs in white-collar criminal investigations, and considers the NDAA's new reporting provision and its relationship with other efforts to enhance transparency in DOJ decision-making.
A Lawyer's System for Active Reading
Active reading comprises many daily tasks lawyers engage in, including highlighting, annotating, note taking, comparing and searching texts. It demands more than flipping or turning pages.
Bankruptcy Sales: Finding a Diamond In the Rough
There is no efficient market for the sale of bankruptcy assets. Inefficient markets yield a transactional drag, potentially dampening the ability of debtors and trustees to maximize value for creditors. This article identifies ways in which investors may more easily discover bankruptcy asset sales.