There has been lots of criticism of credit ratings agencies, and there surely will be more. Regulators on both sides of the pond are taking close looks, and at least one state attorney general is taking action. Many expect a wave of suits, which may or may not materialize. Some think such suits would be very hard to win, as Investment Dealers' Digest notes. But you would be have to be blind not to notice that the industry has a huge PR problem. They have made some changes, but they need to do more--and get word out to the world. They may have to ban employees from moving to clients for a longer period of time. They may need to make clear exactly how they work with banks to assure top ratings. Those sorts of things. Most of all they need to educate the world about what roles they play and do not play. The notion that they provide investment advice is still out there.  

For more:
- here's the Investment Dealers' Digest article

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