BLB&G Named 2020 Top Securities Practice by Law360

November 30, 2020

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Following a review of nearly 800 submissions, Law360 has selected BLB&G as a winner of its “2020 Practice Group of the Year” award in the Securities category. This is the seventh time that the firm has been selected for this national recognition by Law360, which evaluated “landmark matters and general excellence” over the past year.

BLB&G is among a select handful of plaintiffs' firms that Law360 has recognized across all categories alongside the top corporate defense firms in the country. The firm was selected for its success in recovering millions of dollars for shareholders and advancing landmark corporate governance cases throughout the unpredictable year of 2020.

Law360 highlighted a series of wins for BLB&G in 2020, spotlighting how the firm didn't let the nationwide shift to teleworking hinder its ability to secure nine-figure investor recoveries, including landmark securities settlements for investors in Equifax and Signet Jewelers.

The article, which featured interviews with partners Hannah Ross and Sal Graziano, also highlights the firm’s work securing a $192 million settlement with SCANA over claims the company misled investors about long delays and massive cost overruns in a $9 billion nuclear reactor project; the $50 million settlement reached on behalf of investors in FleetCor Technologies Inc., resolving claims that the fuel-card company was inflating its revenues with improperly charged fees; and the $149 million settlement with Equifax over the credit reporting agency's massive 2017 data breach. 

Hannah explained that the firm's work in Equifax structured the investors’ allegations to challenge statements related to systemic issues at the company, stating that "for future cases, [the Equifax case] demonstrates that you shouldn't only focus on the data breach, but really look and see what the company said about their cybersecurity, and what false assurances they were giving to the market."

The profile also called out the firm’s landmark $240 million settlement with Signet Jewelers, a precedent-setting case that marks the first successful resolution of a securities fraud class action based on allegations of sexual harassment. Hannah also noted that this recovery sends a powerful message to companies, boards and executives that systemic discrimination can be addressed through investor actions. Sal added, “The securities laws have always been there but the materiality of this behavior is now rising to the forefront. And it’s not just sexual harassment, it’s also racial discrimination and denied opportunities – these things are becoming more material out in the world and, therefore, in securities laws.”