When the district court rejected a $6 million settlement in the Halliburton securities class action back in 2004, the judge probably expected the parties to renegotiate. Many years later, after a change in plaintiffs’ counsel, three trips to the Fifth Circuit, two Supreme Court decisions, and more than a dozen posts on this blog about the case, a new agreement finally has been reached.
According to an announcement from the company made just before Christmas, the settlement is for $100 million. Halliburton will pay $54 million, with the rest coming from its insurers. The Reuters legal blog has an interesting review of the settlement from the plaintiffs’ perspective.
Quote of note: “[S]erious settlement talks with Halliburton began after the inconclusive oral argument at the 5th Circuit. Judge Lynn had allowed discovery and briefing to move ahead while the appeal was under way, so summary judgment motions were pending in the trial court. If the 5th Circuit and Judge Lynn had allowed the case to go to trial, Boies himself would have led the shareholders’ team, which would have claimed damages of between $300 million and $750 million.“
The 10b-5 Daily 