Skip to main content
Westbrook & Hayes

Practice III · Class actions, enforcement, and the investigations in between

Securities Litigation & Enforcement

We defend issuers, boards, and executives in securities class actions and government investigations — and prosecute opt-out and fraud claims for institutional investors when the numbers justify leaving the class.

7 yrs our enforcement chair's tenure as a federal prosecutor before founding the practice

How we practice it

Securities matters are won early: at the pleadings stage, in the first proffer to the government, in the internal investigation that decides what the record will look like. Our group is led by a former federal prosecutor and staffed by lawyers who have sat on both sides of the table, which changes how regulators read our submissions.

For institutional investors, we run a focused opt-out practice — evaluating whether stepping out of the class will materially improve recovery, and litigating the cases where it will.

Representative matters

Fictional matters shown on a sample site — and past results never guarantee a future outcome.

  1. 01

    Class action dismissed with prejudice

    Won dismissal at the pleadings stage of a securities class action against a listed software company following a 40% single-day stock drop; no amended complaint was filed.

  2. 02

    Formal SEC investigation closed — no action

    Represented a public-company chief executive through a two-year formal investigation; the staff closed the file without recommending charges.

  3. 03

    3.1× class recovery for opt-out fund

    Prosecuted a direct action for a sovereign-wealth investor that settled confidentially at a multiple of the per-share class recovery.

Who leads it

WH / Consultation

Facing a securities problem?

Bring us the posture, the exposure, and the calendar. A partner from this practice will give you a candid read — including whether you need us at all.

Request a consultation

Or call (555) 014-7700 — conflicts checked within one business day.

Sample site by SearchPod