On January 15, 2008, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a decision that protects investors by imposing restraints on the ability of plaintiffs’ attorneys to bring unwarranted securities fraud lawsuits that, although nominally filed for the purpose of protecting investors, actually harm investors by transferring wealth from stockholders to the pockets of lawyers. The decision was a victory for WLF, which filed a brief urging adoption of restraints. The Court held that securities law claims are improper unless the plaintiff can demonstrate that, when buying or selling a security, (s)he relied on the defendant’s allegedly deceptive practice or conduct. The Court stated that there was no evidence of reliance in this case; the defendants had had no contact with the plaintiffs but were simply merchants who had done business with the company that had issued fraudulent earnings statements.