Securities and Finance

Mutual Fund and Investment Company Act Litigation

The wave of litigation surrounding trading in mutual funds has created a need for sophisticated economic and statistical analyses on how to detect and measure the effects of practices such as market timing and late trading. NERA has developed tools to investigate whether market timing was present using both overall fund flow data and data on trading by individual investors. We have also analyzed how different behaviors by investors and funds influence the losses that non-timing investors suffered. More broadly, NERA economists have worked on numerous cases where the actions of investors and investment advisors have been at issue. Our work in valuation and litigation also allows us to quickly develop tools to meet the needs of new litigation, such as questions about how securities should have been valued in calculating the net asset value of a portfolio. We have also investigated the appropriateness of fees charged by mutual fund companies.