Standard & Poors Nears Settlement with DOJ and State Regulators

The Department of Justice (DOJ) and twenty state attorney generals are near to completing a $1.375 billion settlement to resolve multiple lawsuits brought over Standard & Poors (S&P) ratings work leading up to the financial crisis. The settlement is expected to be announced as early as next week. S&P thus far has declined to comment on the pending settlement.

The suits alleged impropriety in the overly optimistic ratings S&P assigned to mortgage-backed securities and other bond deals that ended up imploding during the financial crisis of 2007 – 2009 and causing billions in investor losses. The news comes on the heals of another S&P settlement wherein the firm has agreed to pay $77 million to settle claims brought by the U.S.. Securities and Exchange Commission and attorneys general in New York and Massachusetts, involving overly optimistic ratings of certain mortgage-backed securities.

If you purchased subprime or mortgage backed securities and suffered losses as a result, contact the experience securities fraud attorneys at Colling Gilbert Wright for a free case evaluation.