Back in July, I talked about research showing that the number showing that the number of securities class actions has fallen to well below average.

Now we have more evidence showing the trend is continuing. Although it's more complicated than the raw numbers suggest.

The latest Litigation Trends Survey conducted by international law firm Fulbright & Jaworski suggests the numbers are indeed trending down. According to that research, 17 per cent of respondents said their companies had escaped the past year without having to defend a single new lawsuit. That's a lot more than the 11 per cent who said the same in 2005-06. Similarly, 65 per cent of respondents said their company had initiated at least one lawsuit in the past year. That's well ahead of the pack.

On the other hand, forty percent of U.S. companies say they were hit with at least one suit in the past year with more than $20 million at issue. Among billion-dollar businesses, 62 per cent were served with at least one $20 million lawsuit. In other words, the suits are decreasing but the stakes are getting higher.