Securities Private Enforcement Reform Act
Official title: To amend the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 in order to reform private enforcement of the Federal securities laws, and for other purposes.
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Referred to the Subcommittee on Telecommunications and Finance.
Securities Private Enforcement Reform Act - Amends the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 to declare that a defendant may be liable jointly and severally for damages in an implied private action only if the trier of fact specifically determines that the defendant knowingly engaged in securities fraud. Sets forth a liability allocation scheme to determine the percentage of responsibility among the defendants if the trier of fact finds that the defendant did not engage in knowing securities fraud.
Prescribes guidelines for the award of reasonable fees and expenses incurred by the prevailing party in any implied private action.
Declares that in any implied right of action that is certified as a plaintiff class action: (1) the share that is awarded to the representative plaintiff shall be calculated in the same manner as the share awarded to all other members of the plaintiff class; (2) a party may not be represented by any attorney who owns or has a beneficial interest in the securities that are the subject of the litigation, or who is obligated to pay remuneration to a third party for assistance in obtaining the representation of any party to the action; and (3) funds disgorged as a result of Securities and Exchange Commission action shall not be distributed as payment for attorneys' fees or expenses incurred by private parties seeking distribution of the disgorged funds.
Sets a statute of limitations on private rights of action under this Act.
- Introduced in House Formatted Text PDF
Cite this page
U.S. Congress. (2026). H.R. 417: Securities Private Enforcement Reform Act. 103rd Congress. Open America. https://openamerica.io/bill/103-HR-417/
"H.R. 417: Securities Private Enforcement Reform Act." 103rd Congress, 2026, Open America, https://openamerica.io/bill/103-HR-417/.
H.R. 417, 103rd Cong. (2026), https://openamerica.io/bill/103-HR-417/.
[H.R. 417: Securities Private Enforcement Reform Act](https://openamerica.io/bill/103-HR-417/)