Congress Considers Changing Lead Attorney Selection Process in Class Action Suits

An August 18, 2006 article by Charles Delafuente in the ABA Journal eReport notes that a bill sponsored by Rep. Richard Baker, R-La., is being debated in the House of Representatives that would allow judges to use competitive bidding by law firms as a means of selecting lead counsel in securities class actions. Although this method has been considered and rejected by the Third and Ninth Circuits in favor of the traditional method of selecting lead counsel—allowing the lead plaintiff, once determined, to select their own counsel—the issue has resurfaced in light of the recent charges against plaintiffs’ firm Milberg Weiss Bershad & Schulman.

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