The lead plaintiff is the person that the court appoints to act as the representative of all aggrieved shareholders. The lead plaintiff will make all litigation decisions for the class including whether to settle the case and for what amount. The lead plaintiff is the only shareholder who will know what is happening with the litigation until the case settles, at which point in time the lead plaintiff will notify all other class members regarding the settlement. The lead plaintiff is a fiduciary for all aggrieved shareholders and must litigate the case with all shareholder’s interests in mind, notify other class members at the end of the case of the settlement, and distribute funds proportionate to each shareholder’s individual loss.
