Subprime Suits Outpacing S&L Crisis Litigation

The number of subprime-related cases filed in federal courts is "dramatically outpacing" the litigation filed during the savings-and-loan crisis of the early 1990s, according to Navigant Consulting Inc., Chicago. According to a Navigant study, 278 subprime-related cases were filed in 2007, nearly half the total of 559 S&L cases handled by the Resolution Trust Corp. over several years. "The S&L crisis has been a high-water mark in terms of the litigation fallout of a major financial crisis," said Jeff Nielsen, managing director of Navigant Consulting. "The subprime-related cases appear on their way to eclipsing that benchmark." Mr. Nielsen said the wave of litigation "appears to be just the beginning" and that there has been "a steady acceleration" of such cases so far this year. Navigant can be found on the Web at http://www.navigantconsulting.com.