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Global securities class actions generated more than $4bn in investor recoveries in 2025, underscoring sustained litigation activity despite shifting market conditions. The latest annual analysis from Broadridge Financial Solutions points to a disputes landscape that is becoming more complex, more international and increasingly shaped by artificial intelligence and ESG-related claims.
The report highlights how class action participation is evolving from a largely passive process into a more operational and strategically managed function for institutional investors.
According to Broadridge’s seventh Global Class Action Annual Report, global securities and antitrust settlements generated just over $4bn in recoveries during 2025, compared with $5.2bn in 2024. While slightly lower year on year, the figures remain historically elevated against a backdrop of volatile markets and expanding cross-border litigation frameworks.
Nine settlements exceeded the $100m threshold during the year, only marginally below the record pace set in 2024. US federal securities filings also remained relatively stable at 205 cases, broadly in line with the four-year rolling average.
One of the most significant developments identified in the report is the continued rise of AI-related securities litigation. Broadridge recorded a growing number of claims alleging misleading disclosures concerning artificial intelligence capabilities, earnings expectations and risk controls.
Twelve new AI-linked cases were filed in 2025 alone, contributing to more than 50 such filings over the past five years. Many claims centre on so-called “AI washing”, where companies are alleged to have overstated technological sophistication or commercial readiness.
The trend reflects intensifying regulatory and investor scrutiny around how issuers describe the financial impact and operational maturity of AI initiatives.
The report also highlights accelerating adoption of opt-in and collective redress mechanisms, particularly across Europe. More than 100 collective redress claims were filed in Europe during 2025, signalling the continued maturation of the region’s group litigation landscape.
Jurisdictional developments are reinforcing the shift toward earlier and more active participation by institutional investors. In Australia, for example, the growing use of “soft class closures” — requiring investors to register before mediation — illustrates how procedural rules are evolving to encourage proactive engagement.
For global asset managers and custodians, these changes are increasing the operational complexity of claims management and recovery strategies.
Environmental, social and governance issues remain a significant driver of securities litigation risk. Broadridge notes that ESG-focused claims continued to grow during 2025, reflecting rising investor activism and heightened expectations around corporate disclosure.
With global ESG investment projected to reach $30tn by 2030, shareholder actions tied to governance, sustainability and compliance issues are expected to remain a prominent feature of the disputes landscape.
Separate survey data from Norton Rose Fulbright indicates that US corporate counsel reported increased exposure to ESG-related class actions in 2025, alongside a sharp rise in cybersecurity and data privacy claims.
The broader picture emerging from market participants is one of growing procedural and jurisdictional complexity. Differences in filing requirements, settlement mechanics and participation rules across jurisdictions are making recovery strategies more demanding for institutional investors.
At the same time, claimant firms are increasingly pursuing privacy and data-driven class actions across multiple jurisdictions, including the US, UK, EU and Canada, according to analysis from Dentons.
Courts in England and Wales have shown caution toward opt-out privacy claims, while the Netherlands continues to develop as a key European venue for collective redress actions under the EU’s Representative Actions Directive framework.
The practical takeaway is that securities class actions are becoming more global, data-driven and procedurally complex, requiring earlier and more coordinated engagement from investors and corporate legal teams.
Taken together, the latest data suggests that global class action participation is evolving into a more strategically significant discipline for institutional investors, custodians and corporate defendants alike.
As AI disclosures, ESG accountability and cross-border collective mechanisms continue to develop, the operational demands of securities litigation — and the associated recovery opportunities — are likely to remain firmly on the radar of corporate legal and risk teams through 2026 and beyond.
