The High Court has struck out a claim by the former shareholders of a dissolved company against an investor on the basis that all the losses claimed were barred by the reflective loss principle: Burnford & Ors v Automobile Association Developments Ltd [2022] EWHC 368 (Ch). As a reminder, the Supreme Court in Sevilleja v … Read more

The High Court has published a summary of its findings on liability in the long-running USD$5 billion civil fraud action brought by the Hewlett Packard group in connection with its acquisition of the UK software company Autonomy Corporation Limited in 2012. The claimants have “substantially succeeded” in their claims against two former Autonomy executives: ACL Netherlands … Read more

Herbert Smith Freehills LLP have published an article in Butterworths Journal of International Banking and Financial Law on the litigation and regulatory risks for special purpose acquisition companies (SPACs) in England & Wales. SPACs scorched the US stock markets last year, with the UK left out in the cold. While the recent crackdown by the Securities and … Read more

Herbert Smith Freehills have published an article in the Journal of International Banking Law and Regulation: COVID-19 market disclosures and managing the associated litigation risks. Since the start of the pandemic many listed companies have sought to strengthen their balance sheet by raising additional capital from shareholders. This article considers the types of disclosures relating … Read more

The Board of the Privy Council has allowed an appeal in relation to the application of the so-called “reflective loss” principle, confirming that the rule falls to be assessed as at the point in time when a claimant suffers loss and not at the time proceedings are brought Primeo Fund v Bank of Bermuda (Cayman) … Read more

HM Treasury (HMT) has published an initial consultation on fundamental reforms promising the biggest shake up of the prospectus regime since 2005. The consultation follows the conclusions of the Hill Review of the UK listing regime published in March 2021. In this blog post, we consider HMT’s consultation paper through a securities litigation lens, highlighting the … Read more

The Court of Appeal has held that the so-called “reflective loss” principle will not bar the claim of a shareholder, who is also a contractual promisee/beneficiary, in circumstances where the company in which the shares are owned has acquired the right to bring a claim in respect of the same contract against the same wrongdoer … Read more

The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) has confirmed that qualified investors (as well as retail investors) can bring an action for damages on the basis of inaccuracies in a prospectus published to the public at large, as a matter of interpretation of Directive 2003/71/EC (the Prospectus Directive): Bankia SA v Unión Mutua … Read more