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The Bulletin - Fall 2018

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  • Kessler Topaz Leads the Charge in the Closely Watched VIX Manipulation Multidistrict Litigation

    Joshua Materese

    This multidistrict litigation arises from over a decade of manipulation of financial instruments linked to the Chicago Board Options Exchange’s (“CBOE”) Volatility Index, the “VIX,” and the opaque settlement process CBOE designed for certain of those instruments. [1] In September, Kessler Topaz and...

  • #METOO'S Impact on Corporate Law

    On January 27, 2018, The Wall Street Journal published an article revealing that Steve Wynn, the Las Vegas casino developer who built Mirage, Treasure Island, Bellagio, Wynn and Encore Casinos and then-Chairman and CEO of Wynn Resorts, Ltd., had sexually harassed and forced employees to perform sex...

  • KTMC Seeks to Hold Accountable for Security Vulnerabilities in its CPUs

    Jennifer Joost

    On January 2, 2018, consumers learned for the first time that confidential information stored in their computer was vulnerable to a new set of security attacks known as Spectre. Spectre gets its name from “speculative execution” and the fact that these types of attacks likely will “haunt” the...

  • Delaware Chancery Court Determines Whether Federal Forum Provisions in Bylaws Can Curb Securities Class Actions Filed in State Courts

    On September 28, 2018, the Delaware Chancery Court heard oral argument on the question of whether a corporation could enact a bylaw designating a federal district court as the exclusive forum for claims under the Securities Act of 1933 (the “Securities Act”). Such bylaws are the latest salvo in a...

  • Kessler Topaz Pending Injunction Application Pressures LaSalle Hotel Properties to Accept a Value-Maximizing Transaction with Pebblebrook Hotel Trust

    On June 29, 2018, Kessler Topaz filed litigation in Maryland state court on behalf of Erie County Employees’ Retirement System (“Erie County”), challenging the conflicted acquisition of LaSalle Hotel Properties (“LaSalle”) by The Blackstone Group, L.P. (“Blackstone”) for $33.50 per share in cash...

  • Dutch Court Asserts Jurisdiction Over Petrobras In Shareholder Foundation Action but Doubt Remains Over Ultimate Viability of This Approach to Recovery of Petrobras Investment Losses

    Emily Christiansen

    Petroleo Brasileiro S.A. (“Petrobras”), a Brazilian state-run energy company and arguably one of the world’s largest energy businesses has been mired in the largest corruption scandal in Brazilian history. An investigation dubbed “Operation Car Wash” by local Brazilian law enforcement authorities...

  • Ninth Circuit Clarifies Contours of Judicial Notice and Incorporation by Reference in Light of "Concerning Pattern in Securities Cases" of "Overuse"

    Johnston (Jay) Whitman, Jr., Jonathan Neumann

    Background In considering a motion to dismiss under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure (“Rule”) 12(b)(6), a court’s review is generally “limited to the complaint.” Lee v. City of L.A., 250 F.3d 668, 688 (9th Cir. 2001). There are, however, two recognized exceptions to this general rule: (1) judicial...