The number of  class action securities lawsuits filed in U.S. courts rose in the past six months and there was a big spike last year in litigation over merger disclosures, according to a study released on Thursday.

Between July and December there were 104 federal securities class action lawsuits filed in federal courts, up from 72 filed in the first six months of 2010, according to a study by the Stanford Law School Securities Class Action Clearinghouse and Cornerstone Research.

The total number of lawsuits ticked up to 176 from 168 in 2009, although last year's filings were still below the annual average of 195 since 1997.

One area with a big increase were lawsuits filed over the lack of disclosure relating to a merger, which rose to 40 from seven in 2009.

"The sharp increase in federal litigation alleging disclosure violations in M&A transactions suggests that plaintiff lawyers are scrambling for new business as traditional fraud cases seem to be on the decline," said Joseph Grundfest, the director of the Stanford Law School Securities Class Action Clearinghouse.

He attributed the spike to a strategy by plaintiffs lawyers looking for a way to exert control over merger-related lawsuits, which are usually filed in state courts.

Financial Recovery Technologies (FRT) announced today that they have added staff in response to unprecedented growth.  FRT, a technology-based services firm and member of the Cross Country Group, focuses on helping institutional investors identify and file claims in order to collect funds made available in securities class action filings. 

Over 1,300 such cases have been settled, resulting in over $60 billion in funds since 1995.  However, the complex process of filing claims has led to less than 35% of settlement funds being recovered.  FRT creates value by working on behalf of institutional investors to ensure all such recoveries are realized.

Founded in 2008, FRT is a unique group characterized by individuals with years of experience servicing large institutional investors.  Through their proprietary technology and comprehensive service processes, they have grown into a respected industry leader and continue to seek out individuals that bring exceptional skills.

"Our new hires bring distinctive capabilities that will enable us to further accelerate our growth and enhance our delivery capabilities," said David Bedard, President of FRT. "In 2011, I expect our expanded team will continue our tradition of outperforming all industry benchmarks and achieving the highest possible levels of customer satisfaction."

Christopher Doggett recently joined the firm as Executive Vice President to lead FRT's business development efforts and advance the company's growth strategy. Chris joins FRT from Sophos, a global software firm, where he was a Vice President, and worldwide leader for the firm's partner sales and marketing programs, infrastructure and strategy.

Since the beginning of the third quarter of 2010, the firm has added new employees in all functional areas, including three senior sales professionals, a senior software engineer and a management associate.  These additions were made to ensure leadership in a rapidly evolving industry.

About Financial Recovery Technologies

Financial Recovery Technologies is a technology-based services firm that helps institutional investors identify, file claims and collect funds made available in securities class action filings. Offering the most comprehensive range of securities class action filing services available, the firm excels by providing best-in-class eligibility analysis, disbursement auditing and client reporting, and by delivering the highest level of accuracy, accountability and transparency available. For more information, please visit www.frtservices.com.

About The Cross Country Group

Headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts and privately held, The Cross Country Group (CCG) and its member companies provide best-in-class technology-enabled service programs across a broad spectrum of industries, including automotive, insurance, financial services. CCG's companies serve hundreds of corporate clients and their 75 million customers each year.  For more information, visit www.crosscountrygroup.com.

Microsoft is facing a  class action lawsuit in Italy over how difficult it is making getting a refund for copies of Windows that are bundled with new PCs. Filed in Milan by the Associazione per i Diritti degli Utenti e Consumatori (ADUC), the lawsuit (statement) aims to have Microsoft make changes to its end user license agreement (EULA) that assumes users agree to it by using the software when first turning on their PCs.

Those who opt to replace the software with another OS such as Linux are forced to try and get a refund from the hardware vendor rather than Microsoft itself, a process that's proven hard before.

The group is a consumer watchdog and believes Microsoft is being directly anti-competitive. It's "using its strong position in the market to promote their products in an unlawful manner, to the detriment of users and competition," it said.

LexisNexis has been charging litigants "unconscionable" rates to file online documents in Texas federal courts, creating a poll tax-like situation that creates an unconstitutional barrier to open courts, a class action claims in Bexar County Court. The company, and its Netherlands-based parent, Reed Elsevier, faces similar lawsuits in Georgia and Texas federal court.

Lead plaintiff Karen McPeters says she was affected by the LexisNexis' deceptive practices when the discrimination case she filed against Montgomery County, Texas, was transferred to that county's court, where electronic filing is mandatory, in September 2007.

LexisNexis unlawfully conceals that it charges "nearly $16 for every piece of paper filed" online in Montgomery County District Court, according to the complaint.
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Class action security lawsuits are on the rise, with a large spike in federal litigation alleging disclosure violations in merger and acquisition transactions, according to a study by the Stanford Law School Securities Class Action Clearinghouse and Cornerstone Research.

The study revealed the number of lawsuits related to M&A transactions increased 471 percent.

The study also found that of all class action security suits in 2010, 15.4 percent of Standard & Poor's 500 healthcare companies were named defendants in a class action.

The Supreme Court won't stop the class-action certification of a lawsuit against Pella Corp. over a purported defect in one of its windows.

The high court on Tuesday refused to hear an appeal from the window-maker.

The lower courts have certified a class-action lawsuit against Pella. The lawsuit alleges that Pella's aluminum clad wood "Proline" casement windows have a design defect that allows water to seep behind the aluminum cladding. They claim that allows the wood to rot at an accelerated rate, and that Pella committed consumer fraud by not declaring publicly the role that the purported design flaw had in the rot.

But Pella fought the class-action certification, saying consumer fraud claims are inappropriate for class treatment.

Missing a plane connection cost Utah gun owner Greg Revell 10 days in jail after he was stranded in New Jersey with an unloaded firearm he had legally checked with his luggage in Salt Lake City.

Nevertheless, the Supreme Court without comment refused on Tuesday to let Revell sue Port Authority of New York and New Jersey police for arresting him on illegal possession of a firearm in New Jersey and for not returning his gun and ammunition to him for more than three years.

Revell was flying from Salt Lake City to Allentown, Pa., on March 31, 2005, with connections in Minneapolis and Newark, N.J. He had checked his Utah-licensed gun and ammunition with his luggage in Salt Lake City and asked airport officials to deliver them both with his luggage in Allentown.

But the flight from Minneapolis to Newark was late, so Revell missed his connection to Allentown. The airline wanted to bus its passengers to Allentown, but Revell realized that his luggage had not made it onto the bus and got off. After finding his luggage had been given a final destination of Newark by mistake, Revell missed the bus. He collected his luggage, including his gun and ammunition, and decided to wait in a nearby hotel with his stuff until the next flight in the morning.