Securities litigation and enforcement 

A&O Shearman’s securities litigation and enforcement practice is a core component of our market-leading litigation group. 

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With a deep bench of attorneys focusing on this area of law, we are ready to handle any securities dispute. 

Through years of success, we have become the go-to counsel for numerous public companies and financial institutions, as well as their officers and directors. 
 
We recognize that every securities matter is also a business matter. Each case can potentially pose a significant threat, and – if not handled with the appropriate care and sensitivity – can cause major reputational and financial risks. 

A comprehensive approach

Our team offers clients a distinctive global footprint, enabling us to handle any concurrent or successive proceedings seamlessly across borders, forums and regulators.

We have built a dedicated practice focused on the defense of public corporations, financial institutions, and individuals in securities class actions and derivative litigation. 

We have represented clients in matters related to some of the most prominent market crises and public events in recent history. Our team also helps clients stay ahead of the curve, proactively identifying risks and working to manage them. 

Issuer representation

Our team is equipped to handle the most complex and highest-profile securities matters anywhere in the world. Our comprehensive approach to positioning our issuer matters for success, including efficiently gathering the facts, diving deep into legal arguments, seeking early dismissals, and bringing other motions to limit or resolve the matter, distinguishes us in the market. 

Underwriter representation

When multiple financial institutions need to agree on one law firm to represent them in a securities class action arising out of a significant underwriting, they frequently choose us. We have a market-leading position in underwriter representations, with an enviable track record of early dismissals. 

A deep bench of former prosecutors and regulators

Our securities litigation and enforcement practice comprises numerous former U.S. government prosecutors and regulators, who have collectively represented clients before all the major government investigating agencies and handled countless jury trials.

Clients from around the world, and across a wide array of industries, seek our counsel in navigating complicated and highly sensitive investigations and prosecutions. Our expertise includes securities fraud, accounting fraud, insider trading, criminal antitrust violations and the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA).

We understand the high-stakes nature of these matters and tailor our strategies not only to mitigate legal risk, but to manage our clients’ reputational risk too. U.S. authorities have themselves recognized our expertise and integrity, twice appointing our attorneys as independent compliance monitors in high-profile investigations.

Our approach has yielded unparalleled success in managing major securities enforcement matters. We have persuaded authorities to decline to file charges or claims in cases on behalf of global companies, and have consistently demonstrated our readiness to go to court, where our lawyers have prevailed in some of the most significant trial matters in recent years.

Representative matters 

  • Altice USA and Altice Europe and its individual directors in connection with litigation related to its 2017 IPO securities offering.  
  • Cemex Latam Holdings, S.A., one of the largest producers of cement in Latin America, in a federal securities class action related to allegations that executives engaged in a bribery scheme. 
  • Paramount Global (formerly ViacomCBS) in a closely-watched securities class action litigation arising from the collapse of Archegos Capital Management. 
  • PayPal Holdings, Inc. in a major securities class action litigation, as well as related shareholder derivative litigation.  
  • Uber Technologies Inc. and certain of the Company’s senior executives and directors in securities class action lawsuits in connection with its IPO. 
  • A former CFO of Rio Tinto Limited in relation to proceedings brought by ASIC against Rio Tinto, its former CFO and former CEO concerning market disclosure requirements, asset impairment rules and alleged breaches of director’s duties. The proceedings were prosecuted simultaneously with related proceedings brought by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in the Southern District of New York.
  • Todd Newman, formerly of Diamondback Capital, when the U.S. Supreme Court declined to rehear the government’s case after the Second Circuit’s landmark decision to overturn Mr. Newman’s conviction for insider trading. 
  • Multiple underwriters, including clients such as a group of financial institutions, and many others in separate securities class actions arising out of recent stock offerings of companies such as SunEdison, TerraForm Global, ARCP, Arconic, Bumble, electroCore, Tesla, Mesa Air, Loma Negra, PPDAI, ZTO Express, Synchrony, Sunrun, Tesla, Teva Pharmaceuticals, Magnum Hunter Resources, MF Global, Fifth Third Bank, Focus Media, TCP International, Alnylam, MOL Global, Navient, Apigee, China Mobile Games & Entertainment, and Popular, Inc. and many others. 

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