The Rocky Mountain News reports today that a barrage of shareholder lawsuits was filed last week against mutual fund companies that allegedly failed to collect millions of dollars in securities class action settlement payouts to which the funds were entitled.

The article states that more than 40 such cases were brought against mutual fund operators last week, and that the cases charge money managers with neglecting their fiduciary duty to investors.   The companies sued reportedly include Janus, Dreyfus, and MassMutual.

The article also includes some interesting information from Randall Thomas, a professor of law and business at Vanderbilt University Law School who was the co-author of an eye-opening article in 2002 entitled "Leaving Money on the Table: Do Institutional Investors Fail to File Claims in Securities Class Actions?"  The article states that Thomas also is

co-author of a just-completed study that examined 118 class-action security settlements. It found that less than a third of institutional investors file claims.  Thomas said the average recovery for the institutional investor would have been $75,000 to $100,000 per claim. (Emphasis added).

The Neuberger Berman Family of Funds appears to be among the reported 40 cases filed last week.  This complaint filed January 12 in the Southern District of New York indicates that plaintiffs are pursing claims in these cases for breach of fiduciary duty, negligence, and violations of the Investment Company Act.