Lieff Cabraser Securities Practice Group Profile

Described by The American Lawyer as "one of the nation's premier plaintiffs' firms," Lieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein, LLP, enjoys a national reputation for professional integrity and the successful prosecution of our clients' claims. We are one of only two plaintiffs' law firms in the nation to have been selected by The National Law Journal as a member of its "Plaintiffs' Hot List" for the past five years.

A Premier Litigation Team

Over the last fifteen years, Lieff Cabraser attorneys have taken two securities cases to trial, and prevailed in each case. In the vast majority of the securities cases, however, we obtain favorable settlements for our clients. Successful settlements are crafted upon a credible threat of achieving a substantial verdict against the defendant if the case proceeds to trial.

Our attorneys are known for their expertise in complex cases and responsible prosecution of our clients' claims. Courts have noted our extensive experience leading multidistrict litigations and other complex civil actions in appointing our attorneys as Lead Counsel in securites actions.

In addition to more than fifty attorneys, Lieff Cabraser has substantial internal resources to litigate against the most powerful of defendants and their counsel. We employ an impressive team of forensic accountants, financial analysts, investigators and legal assistants with years of experience in securities and investor fraud lawsuits. The members of our Litigation Support Department are experts in the latest document review and courtroom presentation technologies, and assists our attorneys at trial. We also have relationships with leading economists and experts in the fields of accounting, finance and corporate management.

A Selective Approach to Securities Litigation

We represent clients in securities cases only when there has been serious misconduct or financial fraud. As a result, no court has ever dismissed a securities fraud action in which Lieff Cabraser has served as plaintiffs' lead counsel since the passage of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act in 1995. Typically, a significant percentage of all securities fraud class action lawsuits are dismissed at the pleading stage of the litigation.

Lieff Cabraser has also been successful in representing state and private funds and high-net-wealth investors in pursuing their own claims (independent actions) rather than relying on recoveries obtained in class action litigation. In many cases we have obtained a significant percentage of our clients' losses, and a far higher percentage of losses than would have been recovered if the client remained in class action litigation against the defendant.

The Strength of a National Law Firm

Since our founding in 1972, we have successfully litigated claims for securities and financial fraud and corporate misconduct in federal and state courts nationwide. We represent clients in class, independent, derivative and other actions nationwide. Our clients include state, local and union pension funds with multi-billion dollar portfolios, public officials, mutual fund managers and other institutional investors as well as high-wealth individual investors.

Lieff Cabraser is "one of the most foremost law firms in the country in both securities law and class actions."

-- U.S. District Court Judge William Alsup

We take great pride in the leadership roles our firm has played in many of this country's major cases, including those resulting in landmark decisions and precedent-setting rulings. Lieff Cabraser has been appointed lead or Co-Lead Counsel in over 250 nationwide class actions spanning eight practice areas. With co-counsel, we have litigated forty-two cases in which $100 million or more in jury verdicts were rendered or settlements were reached, including eleven cases each valued in excess of $1 billion.

Our successes in the field of securities law include In re Scorpion Techs., Inc. Sec. Litig. I and related actions in which we achieved a trial verdict of $170.7 million; Informix/Illustra Sec. Litig., where we obtained a recovery in excess of $136 million; and in Merrill Lynch Fundamental Growth Fund, et al. v. McKesson HBOC, Inc., et al., Lieff Cabraser recovered $150 million, an amount which exceeded the funds' actual economic losses.

A Focus First and Foremost on the Client

We have served as counsel for hundreds of thousands of class members in securities fraud class action lawsuits. We have also served as counsel or have been selected as part of a pool of litigators to represent scores of state, local and union pension and retirement funds, public officials, mutual fund managers and other institutional investors.

"Counsel for the plaintiffs did a very good job in a very tough situation of achieving an excellent recovery for the class here. You were opposed by extremely capable lawyers. It was an uphill battle... the recovery that was achieved is remarkable, almost a hundred percent."

-- U.S. District Judge Susan Illston on Lieff Cabraser's work in Claghorn v. Edsaco

We have a deep appreciation of our clients' needs and work closely with them throughout the litigation process to maximize and expedite their recoveries. We are discrete and scrupulous in guarding our clients' reputations, and adhere to strict confidentiality.

Lieff Cabraser is unique in that it is committed to taking cases to trial and has demonstrated success in obtaining trial victories in securities class actions. With our substantial resources and securities litigation experience and expertise, Lieff Cabraser is well-positioned to prosecute the claims of our clients and class members and to obtain the largest possible recovery on their behalf.

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