Frank Schneider assesses loss causation, class certification, economic losses, and valuation issues for companies and investors across a range of industries and financial instruments. He focuses on litigation involving financial institutions, including asset management and private equity, securities, valuation issues, M&A transactions, credit rating agencies, and white collar matters. Dr. Schneider has provided financial and statistical analyses for internal and regulatory investigations, many of which require analysis of big data.
Securities litigation
Dr. Schneider analyzes loss causation, class certification, liability, and damages in Rule 10b-5, Section 11, and ERISA cases alleging accounting misstatements, fraudulent earnings guidance, and other misconduct:
- Evaluated whether securities traded in an efficient market
- Used event studies to measure stock price reaction to news releases
- Examined characteristics of securities traded on multiple exchanges
- Assessed loss causation and damages in 401(k) company “stock drop” litigations
- Analyzed stock price response to earnings surprises
- Researched value of corporate control and voting rights
Financial institutions
Dr. Schneider addresses issues involving banks, insurance companies, and mortgage originators. He analyzes how economic trends, changes in the regulatory environment, and company performance are connected, including during the credit crisis and in the context of the resulting mortgage-backed securities litigation:
- Performed financial analysis of a portfolio of collateralized debt obligations (CDOs) and other structured products
- Analyzed structured investment vehicles (SIVs) and other off-balance-sheet conduits and the impact of liquidity on these entities
- Assessed quality of execution of foreign exchange transactions
- Examined determinants of profitability and alleged bid-rigging in municipal bond derivative transactions
- Addressed market structure, competition, class certification, and damages in matters involving alleged manipulation of setting of interest rate benchmarks and foreign exchange
- Analyzed market-wide liquidity, as well as liquidity of specific securities
- Addressed class certification issues in cases involving institutional investors
- Analyzed issues in the commercial banking industry, including private banking, regulatory capital requirements, loan loss reserves, and credit quality
- Assessed claims of an independent sales organization (ISO) against a merchant bank in the credit card space
