A New Era in Global Securities Litigation

As securities markets become increasingly interconnected, multinational public corporations continue to be a part of a significant sea change in the globalization of securities fraud litigation — a change that began with the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2010 decision Morrison v. National Australia Bank Ltd. In Morrison’s wake, foreign and American investors are largely foreclosed from accessing American courts to litigate claims against foreign issuers whose shares do not trade on a U.S. exchange. Further, access to American courts was extinguished for “F-cubed” cases (foreign investors, suing a foreign issuer, traded on foreign exchanges). As such, shareholder plaintiffs barred from U.S. courts are looking to courts in foreign jurisdictions to provide the best forum to litigate alleged securities fraud and seek redress. To understand and prepare for this sea change, multinational defendants facing securities litigation around the globe should be aware of jurisdictions in which they could be sued, as well as those in which they may be able to obtain global relief.