Laura H. Posner

Laura H. Posner is a partner at Cohen Milstein and a member of the firm’s Securities Litigation & Investor Protection and Ethics & Fiduciary Counseling practices.

Prior to joining the firm, Ms. Posner was appointed by the New Jersey Attorney General to serve as the Bureau Chief for the New Jersey Bureau of Securities – the top Securities Regulator in New Jersey.  In that capacity, Ms. Posner was responsible for administrating and enforcing the New Jersey Uniform Securities Law and regulations thereunder, as well as managing and overseeing the employees who staff the Bureau of Securities.  Cases prosecuted under Ms. Posner’s direction as Bureau Chief resulted in hundreds of millions of dollars in recoveries for New Jersey residents, as well as more than 20 criminal convictions. 

Over the course of her career, Ms. Posner has recovered billions on behalf of defrauded investors. Her notable successes include 6 of the top 100 securities fraud class action settlements of all time, including:

• In re Wells Fargo & Company Securities Litigation (S.D.N.Y.): Cohen Milstein, as Co-Lead Counsel, represented the Public Employees' Retirement System of Mississippi and the Employees Retirement System of Rhode Island in this securities class action, which alleged that Wells Fargo and certain former executives misrepresented the Bank's compliance with a series of 2018 consent orders with the CFPB, OCC, and the Federal Reserve arising from the Bank's widespread consumer fraud banking scandal. On September 8, 2023, the Court granted final approval of a historic $1 billion settlement, which is the 17th largest securities class action settlement ever, the sixth largest in the last decade, the ninth largest ever in the Second Circuit, and the largest ever without a restatement or related actions by the Securities Exchange Commission or U.S. Department of Justice.
• In re Schering-Plough Corp./ENHANCE Securities Litigation (D.N.J.) and In re Merck & Co., Inc. Vytorin/Zetia Securities Litigation (D.N.J.): Obtained $688 million for investors on the eve of trial, the third largest recovery ever achieved in the Third Circuit and District of New Jersey, the second largest securities fraud settlement ever against a pharmaceutical company and among the top 25 securities fraud settlements of all time. 
• In re The Mills Corporation Securities Litigation (E.D. Va.): Obtained $202.75 million for investors, the largest recovery ever achieved in a securities class action in Virginia, and the second largest recovery ever in the Fourth Circuit.
• In re WellCare Health Plans, Inc. Securities Litigation (M.D. Fla.): Obtained $200 million for investors, the largest recovery ever achieved in a securities class action in Florida, and the second largest recovery in the Eleventh Circuit.

Ms. Posner’s other recent high-profile successes include:

• Miller Energy/KPMG (E.D. Tenn.):  Cohen Milstein, as Co-Lead Counsel for the Class alleged that KPMG failed to meet its obligations as the independent auditor of Miller Energy Resources, Inc., which perpetrated a massive fraud, including overstating the value of largely worthless oil reserves to more than $480 million. In July 2022, the Court granted final approval of a $35 million settlement.
• In re Pinterest Derivative Litigation (N.D. Cal.): Cohen Milstein, as Interim Lead Counsel, represented the Employees Retirement System of Rhode Island and other Pinterest shareholders in a consolidated shareholder derivative complaint against certain current officers and directors of Pinterest, including its Board Chairman and CEO, for breaches of fiduciary duty and other violations of Section 14(a) of the Exchange Act, relating to their alleged personal engagement in and facilitation of a systematic practice of illegal discrimination of employees on the basis of race and sex. As a result of this illegal misconduct, the company’s financial position, goodwill, and reputation among users had been harmed. In June 2022, the Court granted final approval of a $50 million settlement and substantial diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives and other governance changes.
• L Brands, Inc. Derivative Litigation: Cohen Milstein represented the State of Oregon and the Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund regarding allegations that the officers and directors of L Brands, Inc., previous owners of Victoria’s Secret, breached their fiduciary duties by maintaining ties with alleged sex offender and pedophile Jeffrey Epstein and fostering a culture of discrimination and misogyny at the company. Following a Delaware General Corporate Law Section 220 books and records demand and an extensive, proprietary investigation, L Brands and the now-standalone company, Victoria’s Secret, agreed to stop enforcing non-disclosure agreements that prohibit the discussion of a sexual harassment claim’s underlying facts; stop using forced arbitration agreements; implement sweeping reforms to their codes of conduct, policies and procedures related to sexual misconduct and retaliation; and to invest $45 million each, for a total of $90 million, in diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives and DEI Advisory Councils.
• Wynn Resorts, Ltd. Derivative Litigation (Eighth Jud. Dist. Crt., Clark Cnty., Nev.): Cohen Milstein represented the New York State Common Retirement Fund and the New York City Pension Funds as Lead Counsel in a derivative shareholder lawsuit against certain officers and directors of Wynn Resorts, Ltd., arising out of their failure to hold Mr. Wynn, the former CEO and Chairman of the Board, accountable for his longstanding pattern of sexual abuse and harassment of company employees.  In March 2020, the Court granted final approval of a $90 million settlement in the form of cash payments and landmark corporate governance reforms, placing it among the largest, most comprehensive derivative settlements in history.  Wynn is the only derivative case in the country involving sexual misconduct allegations to survive demand futility.  
• Tradex Global Master Fund SPC Ltd. et al. v. Lancelot Investment Management, LLC, et al. (Crc. Crt., Cook Cnty., Ill.): In August 2018, the Court granted final approval of a $27.5 million settlement, concluding a nearly decade-old putative investor class action against McGladrey & Pullen LLP, an accounting firm, for its alleged fraud and negligence arising out of the Tom Petters’ Ponzi scheme, one of the largest Ponzi schemes in U.S. history.