Regulatory Disputes Up, But In-House Departments Confident They Can Cope

Regulatory disputes rose in 2022 compared to the previous year, according to the annual Norton Rose Fulbright Annual Litigation Trends Survey. Agencies increased enforcement on issues ranging from cybersecurity and white-collar crime to worker classification and compliance with evolving healthcare rules. Almost half of all respondents reported increased exposure to employment and labor disputes, and expect that trend to continue. One-third of respondents reported experiencing cybersecurity litigation in 2022, the second-highest ranked area of future concern for class actions. Just two percent of respondents reported ESG-related litigation in 2022, but a much higher percentage said their exposure to such suits had grown. More than 1/3 said that ESG-related class actions are among their greatest concerns. Related trends include more legal spending moving in-house, and generalized confidence among organizations that they are prepared to address litigation in the coming year. Internal risk management practices, tools and capabilities — E-discovery platforms and data protection solutions — are cited as confidence boosters.