The volume of private lawsuits in the US stemming from the current financial crisis has already surpassed levels seen in the aftermath of the savings and loan debacle two decades ago, a study has found.

Plaintiffs filed 607 civil cases related to the meltdown in the subprime mortgage market in federal courts during the 18 months to the end of June, according to a review published yesterday by Navigant Consulting.

That compares with 559 lawsuits over six years from the savings and loan turmoil, a period which had been widely viewed as a high-water mark in terms of litigation fall-out from a financial crisis.

't is perhaps of little surprise that, as the current crisis takes on unprecedented scale, the related litigation would as well,' said Jeff Nielsen, head of Navigant’s financial services disputes and investigations group.

Financial Times