On January 10, 2024, Cummins Inc. (“Cummins” or “CMI”) (NYSE:CMI), the California-based engine manufacturer, agreed to pay a $1.675 billion penalty in a settlement with the Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) and Department of Justice (“DOJ”) regarding vehicle emissions control violations under the Clean Air Act. This is the largest civil penalty in the history of the Clean Air Act and the second largest environmental penalty ever. The EPA and DOJ alleged…
On November 22, 2023, Tiger Global Management LLC (“Tiger Global”) announced that its Private Investment Chief Officer, Scott Schleifer, is stepping down from this role and transitioning to become an advisor for the firm. From 2021 to 2023, Schleifer headed Tiger Global’s private investment practice through Private Investment Portfolio XV and XVI (PIP 15 and PIP 16), which have reportedly incurred losses of 30% or more over the last two…
For several years, the Kinetics Paradigm Fund, along with other funds managed by Horizon Kinetics, has been accumulating concentrated positions of Texas Pacific Land Corporation (“Texas Pacific Land”). The Kinetics Paradigm Fund offers Class A shares (KNPAX), Class C shares (KNPCX), Class Institutional shares KNPYX) and no load shares (WWNPX) Texas Pacific Land (NYSE: TPL) is the largest private landowner in Texas and generates revenues from land and water resource…
On October 25, 2023, U.S. District Judge Andrew L. Carter, Jr. granted final approval of a $124.6 million settlement reached in a class action lawsuit against Ruane, Cunniff & Goldfarb Inc., DST Systems, Inc., the Advisory Committee of the DST Systems, Inc. 401(k) Profit Sharing Plan, the Compensation Committee of the Board of Directors of DST Systems, Inc., and Robert D. Goldfarb (collectively, “DST Systems”). The settlement resolves allegations that…
On September 27, 2023, U.S. District Judge Janet C. Hall granted final approval of a $15 million settlement reached in a class action lawsuit against Eversource Energy Services Company, the Board of Directors of Eversource Energy Services Company (“Board”), the Eversource Plan Administrative Committee (“Administrative Committee), and the Eversource Investment Management Committee (“Investment Committee”) (collectively, “Eversource”). The settlement resolves allegations that Eversource mismanaged the Eversource 401(k) Plan (“Plan”), to the…
On July 24, 2023, the Honorable Lisa G. Wood of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Georgia denied a summary judgment bid filed by Sailormen, Inc. (“Defendant”), the owner of a chain of Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen (“Popeyes”) restaurants in Florida and Georgia. The lawsuit concerns allegations that Defendant mishandled overtime payments and benefits for store managers during the COVID-19 pandemic, highlighting the complexities of labor laws…
On July 7, 2023, Plaintiff Melina Jacobs (“Plaintiff”) filed an unopposed motion for preliminary approval of class settlement to resolve claims she brought on behalf of herself, the Verizon Savings Plan for Management Employees (the “Plan”), and other participants of the Plan against Verizon Communication, Inc., (“Verizon”), Verizon Investment Management Corp, the Verizon Employee Benefits Committee, and Marc C. Reed, Matha Delehanty, Andrew H. Nebens, Connia Nelson, Shane Sanders, Robert…
On July 21, 2023, the Department of Justice (“DOJ”) announced that Booz Allen Hamilton Holding Corporation (“Booz Allen” or the “Company”), a Virginia-based provider of data analytics, digital solutions, and consulting services, has agreed to pay $377.45 million to resolve alleged violations of the False Claims Act, 31 U.S.C. §§ 3729–3733 (“FCA”). The settlement, one of the biggest procurement fraud settlements in DOJ history, specifically resolves allegations that Booz Allen…
On June 29, 2023, Yale New Haven Hospital (“Yale”) agreed to certify a class of over 26,000 current and former participants of the Yale-New Haven Hospital and Tax Exempt Affiliates Tax Sheltered Annuity Plan (the “Plan”) in a lawsuit against Yale-New Haven Hospital, Inc., the Board Of Trustees of Yale-New Haven Hospital, Inc., the System Investment Committee of Yale New Haven Health Service Corp. and System Affiliates, and the Retirement…
On July 5, 2023, the honorable Colleen McMahon of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York approved a $2.45 million settlement of class action claims alleging that Omnicom Group, Inc. (“Omnicom” or the “Company”) mismanaged its defined contribution retirement plan (the “Plan”) by subjecting Plan participants to excessive fees and risky, high-cost investment options. The class action began in 2020, when former Omnicom employees Carol…