The U.S. Supreme Court on February 27 continued its extensive exploration of class action litigation, handing a rare victory to plaintiffs.
In Amgen Inc. v. Connecticut Retirement Plans and Trust, the court, by a 6-3 vote, declined to adopt a rule that would have made it harder for plaintiffs to mount a class action in securities fraud cases. Amgen and business groups hoped the court would require plaintiffs to prove, before a class could be certified, that company misrepresentations materially affected the price of its stock. Investors sued Amgen, claiming its misrepresentations about two drugs it marketed to combat anemia had artificially inflated Amgen’s stock price.
