Because that law covers all federal agencies, the department's move raises questions about litigation risks for other agencies, legal experts said.
But using statistics to "prove" racism can also drag companies and local governments into expensive litigation for no reason other than their numbers look bad.
But Mr. Schneiderman said he didn't consider that a victims' fund because it could be used for other litigation costs.
The group obtained Pruitt's travel vouchers through litigation and is suing for other travel-related documents, including speeches he has made in closed-door meetings with industry officials.
Thiel's detractors fear his activism-driven funding of litigation provides a model for other vain billionaires to silence media outlets whose coverage they dislike.
In addition, upon direction from the Office of the General Counsel, records must sometimes be preserved for prescribed periods of time for litigation or other legal purposes.
This approach has been used in other traditional "toxic torts" contexts: asbestos litigation for one, but in other settings as well, like defective medical devices and harmful consumer products.
"From a practical standpoint, the fact that we have a mediation conference scheduled may set a framework for settlement, which may obviate the need for litigation in other buildings".
The S.E.C., in letters to financial institutions, warned in October that an accounting rule "requires you to establish accruals for litigation and other contingencies when it is probable that a loss has been incurred and the amount of the loss can be reasonably estimated".
It's not clear exactly why these are now getting split, whether for litigation or other purposes.
