Yes, shareholder lawsuits are common. But it's the company that pays, not directors.
HP actually paid $100 million in such a lawsuit for the Apotheker/Autonomy flop:
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-hp-classaction-pggm/hp-pay...
The 2010 Board of Directors who created and permitted the $8.8 billion loss paid nothing. They kept their compensation, and most stayed on the board.
Here is a list of hundreds of such open lawsuits:
http://shareholdersfoundation.com/content/new-cases