Litigation and Enforcement

Funds, fund advisers, and fund directors may at times be involved in private civil litigation matters, as well as enforcement actions brought by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and other regulatory agencies. Most civil litigation cases are “excessive fee” cases, where the plaintiffs allege that the adviser breached its fiduciary duty under Section 36(b) of the Investment Company Act of 1940; disclosure-related cases; or state-law based actions. In some cases, fund directors may be named as defendants, and in others, they may be third-party witnesses.

Below are links to additional resources created, published, and maintained by other organizations. They are merely a sample of additional resources for fund directors. IDC does not control, cannot guarantee, and is not responsible for their accuracy, timeliness, or continued availability. These links are provided solely as a service to fund directors and should not be construed as indicating in any way that IDC endorses either the content provided or the third-party providers of any such content.

ICI Mutual: Shareholder Litigation in the Fund Industry: A Guide for Investment Advisers and Fund Independent Directors (pdf)

ICI Mutual: Risk Management Studies

ICI Mutual: Claims Trends Newsletter

ICI Mutual: Trends in Fee Litigation: Actions Brought under Section 36(b) and ERISA (2014) (pdf)

ICI Mutual: Independent Director Litigation Risk: A Practical Guide (pdf)