A new report by Cornerstone Research in conjunction with Latham & Watkins LLP provides a first-ever comprehensive analysis of the characteristics of opt-out securities cases. In these cases, at least one putative class member excludes itself from the class in order to pursue a separate lawsuit against the defendant. Not surprisingly, plaintiffs are more likely to bring opt-out cases stemming from larger class action settlements. About 53 percent of class actions with class settlements of at least $500 million had at least one related opt-out case, compared with 3 percent of all class action settlements.
