Securities Litigation Attorney Accountability and Transparency Act
Latest action · Mar 25, 2008 Referred to the Subcommittee on Capital Markets, Insurance and Government Sponsored Enterprises.
Progress
Where this bill reached, and when. A stage with no date was not reached; one that failed a vote and later carried shows the date it carried.
- IntroducedOct 23, 2007
- Passed HouseNot reached
- Passed SenateNot reached
- To the PresidentNot reached
- Became lawNot reached
Summary
Securities Litigation Attorney Accountability and Transparency Act - Amends the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and the Securities Act of 1933 to state that, in any private action in which the court enters a final judgment against plaintiff on the basis of a motion to dismiss, motion for summary judgment, or a trial on the merits, the court shall, upon defendant's motion, determine whether: (1) the position of the plaintiff was not substantially justified; (2) imposition of fees and expenses on the plaintiff's attorney would be just; and (3) the cost of such fees and expenses to the defendant is substantially burdensome or unjust.
Requires the court to award the defendant reasonable fees and other expenses, and impose such fees and expenses on the plaintiff's attorney, if the court makes positive determinations in such a case.
Places the burden of persuasion upon the defendant as to whether or not the position of the plaintiff was substantially justified.
Requires plaintiff and plaintiff's attorney to provide sworn, signed certifications that identify any actual or promised payment by the attorney to the plaintiff, beyond the plaintiff's pro rata share of any recovery.
Requires similar plaintiff and plaintiff's attorney certifications regarding: (1) legal representations; (2) contributions; and (3) conflicts of interest.
Requires the court, in exercising discretion over the approval of lead counsel, to employ a competitive bidding process as one of the criteria (unless the court determines that such a process is not feasible).
Instructs the Comptroller General to study and report to certain congressional committees on average hourly fees in securities class actions.
Cosponsors 2
Members who signed on, in the order they did. All signed on Oct 23, 2007.
| Seat | Cosponsor | Signed on | |
|---|---|---|---|
| R-CA | Edward R. Royce | Original | Oct 23, 2007 |
| R-TX | Jeb Hensarling | Original | Oct 23, 2007 |
Committees 2
Where it was sent and what each committee and subcommittee did with it, in order.
| Chamber | Committee | What it did |
|---|---|---|
| House | Financial Services Committee | Referred Oct 23, 2007 |
| Capital Markets Subcommittee | Referred Mar 25, 2008 | |
| House | Judiciary Committee | Referred Oct 23, 2007 |
| Courts, Intellectual Property, Artificial Intelligence, and the Internet Subcommittee | Referred Feb 25, 2008 |
Actions 4
Everything that happened, newest first.
- Mar 25, 2008Referred to the Subcommittee on Capital Markets, Insurance and Government Sponsored Enterprises.
- Feb 25, 2008Referred to the Subcommittee on Courts, the Internet, and Intellectual Property.
- Oct 23, 2007Introduced in House
- Oct 23, 2007Referred to the Committee on Financial Services, and in addition to the Committee on the Judiciary, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
Related bills 2
Companion bills and other measures the record links to this one.
| Bill | Title | Relationship | Latest action |
|---|---|---|---|
| S 3033 | Securities Litigation Attorney Accountability and Transparency Act | Related bill | May 19, 2008 |
| HR 5463 | Securities Litigation Attorney Accountability and Transparency Act | Identical bill | Mar 25, 2008 |
Titles 2
Every title it has carried, official and short, at each stage.
- Official Title as Introduced
- To protect investors by fostering transparency and accountability of attorneys in private securities litigation.
- Short Titles as Introduced
- Securities Litigation Attorney Accountability and Transparency Act
Subjects
Assigned by the Library of Congress. Policy area: Finance and Financial Sector.
- Campaign funds
- Civil actions and liability
- Class actions (Civil procedure)
- Commerce
- Competitive bidding
- Conflict of interests
- Congress
- Congressional investigations
- Congressional reporting requirements
- Evidence (Law)
- Finance and Financial Sector
- Frivolous lawsuits
- Government Operations and Politics
- Law
- Lawyers
- Legal advertising and soliciting
- Legal ethics
- Legal fees
- Political action committees
- Securities fraud
- Securities industry
Text 1
Each version as it was printed, newest first.
- Oct 23, 2007Introduced in House
Everything here is as published by Congress: the summary is the Congressional Research Service's, the action wording is the clerks', and the subjects are the Library of Congress's. How far it got is read from the actions themselves, taking the most recent one of each kind, so a bill that failed a vote and later passed is shown as having passed. Records come from this bill on Congress.gov and govinfo.gov; cost estimates are the Congressional Budget Office's, and the hearings are the printed hearings GovInfo publishes, which can appear months after the hearing.
