There were 65 court-approved securities class action settlements involving $1.4 billion in total settlement funds in 2011—the lowest number of approved settlements and corresponding total settlement dollars in more than 10 years, according to Securities Class Action Settlements—2011 Review and Analysis, an annual report by Cornerstone Research. The number of settlements approved in 2011 decreased by almost 25 percent compared with 2010 and was more than 35 percent below the average for the preceding 10 years. Further, the total dollar value of settlements declined by 58 percent, from $3.2 billion in 2010 to $1.4 billion in 2011. The change in the number of settlements from 2010 to 2011 is one of the two largest year-over-year declines and, combined with a year-over-year decrease in settlements in 2010, the first time there has been a decline in the number of settled cases for two consecutive years.

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