A survey shows that fewer U.S. companies have faced lawsuits during the past 12 months, reported the Austin Business Journal.

Fulbright & Jaworski LLP’s survey of in-house attorneys at 250 companies found that 17 percent did not have to defend a lawsuit in the past year, up from 11 percent a year ago. The majority of the lawsuits were related to labor and employment issues.

Meanwhile, 48 percent of companies faced regulatory action by federal agencies, down from 52 percent in the previous year. U.S. companies are also suing less often, with 65 percent of in-house counsels initiating a lawsuit in the past year, compared with 70 percent a year ago.

Still, major companies face more cases involving patent and product liability issues than a year ago. Securities lawsuits are down, in part due to a healthy stock market and tighter accounting controls.