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More than one-third of corporate counsel in the United States and the United Kingdom polled in a recent survey report there has been an increase in external regulatory inquiries directed at their companies, and more than one-quarter of respondents expect the year ahead will bring more litigation and regulation as companies attempt to grow in an economy that remains volatile.
The vast majority of corporate counsel polled by the survey--92% of U.S. companies and 85% of U.K. companies--predict litigation will either rise or remain the same in the next 12 months. Of those, one-third of U.S. respondents predict an increase while 20% of U.K. respondents expect a rise in legal disputes in the coming 12 months. That compares with 31% and 16%, respectively, last year.
These results are obtained from the 2011 Litigation Trends Survey, the eighth annual survey commissioned by Fulbright and Jaworski L.L.P. to gather the experiences and opinions of senior corporate counsel regarding various aspects of litigation. An independent research firm surveyed a total of 405 participants, including 275 in the U.S. and 129 in the U.K. (one did not specify a location). As in the past, the sample is statistically significant.
Other details revealed in the survey include:
--Expectations of an increase in legal disputes have edged up across the entire sample over last year. Few respondents expect fewer legal disputes.
--Among the larger companies surveyed, 38% of respondents foresee more disputes, up from 34% last year.
--Technology/communications is the sector with the biggest jump in expected disputes this year at 38% of respondents, versus just 18% last year. Engineering/construction is next with 36% expecting more disputes, compared with 23% last year.
--Financial services, health care and insurance also show significant rises in expected disputes over the last year, while energy, the leading sector last year at 42%, decreased to 30% of respondents this year.
Fulbright and Jaworski L.L.P. commissions an annual survey of senior corporate counsel regarding various aspects of litigation. This article and graphic came out of the firm's recent "2011 Litigation Trends Survey". The full report of the survey can be found at the firm's website: www.fulbright.com.