Mark D. Harris and Margaret A. Dale
A recent decision of the U.S. Supreme Court has important implications for certain securities class actions filed in state courts. In Cyan v. Beaver County Employees Retirement Fund, No. 15-1439 (March 20, 2018), the Supreme Court resolved a longstanding split among state and federal courts, unanimously holding that the Securities Litigation Uniform Standards Act (SLUSA) did not strip state courts of jurisdiction over class actions alleging violations of only the Securities Act of 1933 and did not empower defendants to remove those federal-law cases from state to federal court.
The first part of this article will discuss the history of the federal securities laws, the background to the Cyan case, and the decision. The second part will discuss the potential implications of Cyan for plaintiffs, defendants, state and federal courts, and Congress.
