Just as they did after officials reached similar settlements with UBS and Bank of America, plaintiffs lawyers in private multidistrict litigation against the banks may argue that the JPMorgan deal sidelines class claims in the MDL.

A Manhattan federal court judge ruled that Parmalat could not recover damages against auditor Grant Thornton because Parmalat's own officers were responsible for fraud at the company.

Cite as: Lopez v. Terrell, 10-2079-pr, NYLJ 1202500705125, at *1 (2d Cir., Decided July 13, 2011)Before: Newman, Calabresi, Hall, C.JJ.De

The auditors hoped to use to the Second Circuit's 2011 decision in Fait v. Regions Financial to escape securities claims related to the bankrupt oil shipping company Overseas Shipholding Group. A judge in New York wasn't having it.

It was inevitable that the collapse of the $300 billion auction-rate securities market in 2008 would trigger securities litigation. But the ARS freeze also spawned a massive antitrust case, after a trio of plaintiffs firms cooked up a theory that the market's demise was triggered by an illegal boycott on the part of major banks.

Cite as: In re American International Group, 08 Civ 4772, NYLJ 1202472640317, at *1 (SDNY., Decided September 27, 2010)Judge Laura Taylor Swainp class="dec