Delaware Chancery Court Dismisses Derivative Claim for Failure to Show Demand Futility; Federal Illegality of Marijuana Industry Bars Relief for Numerous Investor Claims; LIBOR Convictions of Former Deutsche Bank Traders...more
2/9/2022
/ Bank Fraud ,
Banking Sector ,
Board of Directors ,
Breach of Duty ,
Business Judgment Rule ,
Cannabis-Related Businesses (CRBs) ,
Controlled Substances Act ,
Corwin Doctrine ,
Demand Futility ,
Derivative Suit ,
Dismissal With Prejudice ,
Dismissals ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Investors ,
Libor ,
Marijuana Related Businesses ,
Reversal ,
Securities Violations ,
Wire Fraud
Northern District of California Validates SEC’s “Shadow Trading” Theory of Insider Trading Liability; Seventh Circuit Reverses Dismissal of Stockholder Derivative Suit Against Boeing Based on Forum-Selection Bylaw; Delaware...more
1/27/2022
/ Board of Directors ,
Breach of Duty ,
Bylaws ,
Derivative Suit ,
Enforcement Actions ,
False Statements ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Forum Selection ,
Insider Trading ,
Mergers ,
Misleading Statements ,
Putative Class Actions ,
Reversal ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Violations
Second Circuit Affirms Dismissal of Securities Fraud Class Action Against Alkermes; Delaware Court of Chancery Allows SPAC Litigation to Proceed; Ex-Theranos CEO Elizabeth Holmes Convicted on Four Counts of Fraud; Second...more
1/12/2022
/ Breach of Duty ,
Class Action ,
Dismissals ,
False Statements ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Investors ,
Misleading Statements ,
Putative Class Actions ,
Remand ,
Scienter ,
Securities Fraud ,
Securities Litigation ,
Securities Violations ,
Special Purpose Acquisition Companies (SPACs) ,
Vacated ,
Wire Fraud
Delaware Court of Chancery Declines to Dismiss Investment Firm from Stockholder Derivative Suit; Delaware Chancery Court Dismisses Majority of Claims Alleging that California Biotech Firm Profited from Nonpublic Information...more
12/23/2021
/ Aiding and Abetting ,
Bad Faith ,
Biotechnology ,
Board of Directors ,
Breach of Duty ,
Class Action ,
Conflicts of Interest ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Derivative Suit ,
Dismissals ,
False Statements ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Investment Firms ,
Investors ,
Misleading Statements ,
Motion to Dismiss ,
Non-Public Information ,
Proxy Statements ,
Publicly-Traded Companies ,
Scienter ,
Securities Exchange Act of 1934 ,
Securities Fraud ,
Securities Violations ,
Shareholders ,
Stock Prices ,
Unjust Enrichment ,
Vaccinations
Delaware Federal Court Dismisses Shareholder Derivative Suit Concerning Lack of Board Diversity; California Federal Court Dismisses Shareholder Class Action Against Sorrento Therapeutics Regarding COVID-19 Treatment; Delaware...more
12/23/2021
/ Board of Directors ,
Cannabis-Related Businesses (CRBs) ,
Class Action ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Derivative Suit ,
Discovery ,
Discovery Violations ,
Dismissals ,
Diversity ,
False Statements ,
Investment Fraud ,
Investors ,
Misleading Statements ,
Misrepresentation ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Popular ,
Putative Class Actions ,
Rule 10b-5 ,
Scienter ,
Securities Exchange Act of 1934 ,
Securities Violations ,
Shareholder Litigation ,
Shareholders
Ninth Circuit Holds that Purchasers of Unregistered Shares in Slack’s Direct Listing May Bring Securities Act Claims; Small Class of Crypto Purchasers Recommended for Certification; Tether to Pay $41 Million to Settle...more
11/18/2021
/ Cease and Desist ,
CFTC ,
Commodities ,
Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Direct Listing ,
Disgorgement ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Investors ,
Mergers ,
Music Streaming ,
Putative Class Actions ,
Section 11 ,
Securities Act of 1933 ,
Securities Fraud ,
Securities Litigation ,
Securities Violations ,
Settlement Agreements ,
Slack ,
Stablecoins ,
Standing ,
Unregistered Securities ,
Virtual Currency
Delaware Court of Chancery Dismisses Stockholder Derivative Suit for Failure to Allege Demand Futility; Connecticut Jury Finds for Defendant in Crypto Currency Fraud Case; Northern District of Illinois Allows Claims...more
11/17/2021
/ Attorney's Fees ,
Board of Directors ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Delaware General Corporation Law ,
Demand Futility ,
Derivative Suit ,
Dismissals ,
False Statements ,
Investment Contract ,
Jury Verdicts ,
Mergers ,
Misleading Statements ,
Mootness ,
Public Statements ,
Section 203 ,
Securities Fraud ,
Securities Litigation ,
Securities Violations ,
Shareholder Litigation ,
Stock Repurchases ,
Summary Judgment ,
Walgreens
Delaware Court of Chancery Dismisses Marriott Data Breach Derivative Suit; DOJ Announces Creation of National Cryptocurrency Enforcement Team; Fifth Circuit Applies New Standard for Disgorgement Orders In Securities Cases to...more
10/20/2021
/ Breach of Duty ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Data Breach ,
DE Supreme Court ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Derivative Suit ,
Disgorgement ,
Dismissals ,
Duty of Loyalty ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Fund Managers ,
Investment Funds ,
Marriott ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Litigation ,
Securities Violations ,
Statute of Limitations
Delaware Court of Chancery Finds that Director’s Email on Outside Email System Remains Confidential; Delaware Supreme Court Overrules Longstanding Precedent Regarding Derivative Versus Direct Standing; SEC Files Crowdfunding...more
10/8/2021
/ Anti-Fraud Provisions ,
Attorney-Client Privilege ,
Board of Directors ,
Cannabis-Related Businesses (CRBs) ,
Class Action ,
Crowdfunding ,
DE Supreme Court ,
Demand Futility ,
Derivative Suit ,
Dilution ,
Dismissals ,
Email ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Facebook ,
Failure To Disclose ,
FDA Approval ,
Investors ,
Mark Zuckerberg ,
Minority Shareholders ,
Misleading Statements ,
Omissions ,
Putative Class Actions ,
Securities Act of 1933 ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Exchange Act of 1934 ,
Securities Fraud ,
Securities Litigation ,
Securities Violations ,
Unregistered Securities
Northern District of California Dismisses Traders’ Suit Against Bitmex Crypto Exchange with Prejudice; Delaware Supreme Court Upholds Chancery Court Ruling That Stockholder Appraisal Rights Can Be Waived by Contract;...more
9/22/2021
/ Appraisal Rights ,
Article III ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Cryptocurrency ,
DE Supreme Court ,
Delaware General Corporation Law ,
Derivatives ,
Dismissal With Prejudice ,
Material Misrepresentation ,
Rule 10b-5 ,
Section 262 ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Exchange Act of 1934 ,
Securities Fraud ,
Securities Litigation ,
Securities Transactions ,
Securities Violations ,
Settlement ,
Shareholder Rights ,
Standing ,
Stockholder Agreements ,
Waiver of Rights
Northern District of California Dismisses Shareholder Derivative Suit Concerning Lack of Diversity; Delaware Court of Chancery Dismisses Stockholder Suit Against Medical Device Company for Failure to Plead Demand Futility;...more
9/8/2021
/ Appeals ,
Board of Directors ,
Breach of Duty ,
Class Action ,
Corporate Officers ,
Derivative Suit ,
Dismissals ,
Diversity ,
False Statements ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Initial Public Offering (IPO) ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Companies ,
Investment Company Act of 1940 ,
Material Misstatements ,
Misleading Statements ,
Money Laundering ,
Omissions ,
Private Equity Funds ,
Proxy Statements ,
Putative Class Actions ,
Securities Fraud ,
Securities Litigation ,
Shareholder Litigation ,
Special Purpose Acquisition Companies (SPACs)
SEC Settles First-Of-Its-Kind $13m DeFi Tech Action; NASDAQ Board Diversity Rules Challenged in Fifth Circuit; Delaware Court of Chancery Declines to Enforce Contractual Limitations on Liability to Bar Contractual Fraud...more
8/26/2021
/ Aiding and Abetting ,
Blockchain ,
Board of Directors ,
Civil Conspiracy ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Contract Disputes ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Decentralized Finance (DeFi) ,
Digital Assets ,
Diversity ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Fifth Amendment ,
Fraudulent Inducement ,
Investment Companies ,
Investors ,
Misrepresentation ,
Nasdaq ,
Petition for Review ,
Popular ,
Publicly-Traded Companies ,
Purchase Agreement ,
Representations and Warranties ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Exchange Act of 1934 ,
Securities Fraud ,
Securities Violations ,
Settlement ,
Smart Contracts ,
Token Sales ,
Unjust Enrichment ,
Unregistered Securities
Northern District of California Kicks Shareholder Derivative Suit Against Alphabet, Inc. For Failing to Allege Demand Futility; Rare Securities “Holder’s Claim” Trial Results in Jury Verdict for Defendants; Delaware Court of...more
8/17/2021
/ Appeals ,
Board of Directors ,
Breach of Duty ,
Demand Futility ,
Derivative Suit ,
Discovery ,
Dismissals ,
False Statements ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Investors ,
Jury Verdicts ,
McDonalds ,
Misleading Statements ,
Motion to Amend ,
PSLRA ,
Putative Class Actions ,
Race Discrimination ,
Remand ,
Securities Fraud ,
Securities Litigation ,
Securities Violations ,
Sexual Harassment ,
Shareholder Litigation ,
Shareholders ,
Unjust Enrichment
Delaware Court of Chancery Awards Attorneys’ Fees After Gilead’s “Glaringly Egregious” Litigation Conduct; S.D.N.Y Grants Plaintiffs’ Partial Summary Judgment in Securities Class Action Against Perrigo; SPAC Investors Launch...more
7/29/2021
/ Acquisitions ,
Attorney's Fees ,
Board of Directors ,
Books & Records ,
Class Action ,
Delaware General Corporation Law ,
Dismissals ,
Failure To Disclose ,
Failure To State A Claim ,
False Statements ,
Information Requests ,
Initial Public Offering (IPO) ,
Investors ,
Misleading Statements ,
Misrepresentation ,
Omissions ,
Partial Summary Judgments ,
Publicly-Traded Companies ,
Putative Class Actions ,
Section 220 Request ,
Securities Act of 1933 ,
Securities Exchange Act of 1934 ,
Securities Litigation ,
Securities Violations ,
Shareholders ,
Short Selling ,
Special Purpose Acquisition Companies (SPACs)
The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to decide whether the automatic discovery stay established by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 applies to cases under the Securities Act of 1933 when they are brought in...more
In Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. v. Arkansas Teacher Retirement System, the U.S. Supreme Court answered two important questions regarding the standards that govern class certification in securities fraud actions, affirming the...more
6/25/2021
/ Arkansas Teacher Retirement System v Goldman Sachs Group ,
Basic v Levinson ,
Burden of Persuasion ,
Burden of Proof ,
Class Action ,
Class Certification ,
Conflicts of Interest ,
Goldman Sachs ,
Investors ,
Presumption of Reliance ,
SCOTUS ,
Securities Exchange Act ,
Securities Litigation ,
Shareholders
Last month, the SEC announced that a public company had agreed to pay a $20 million penalty to resolve charges related to its repurchase of stock while supposedly in possession of material, non-public information (“MNPI”)...more
On March 18, 2020, the Delaware Supreme Court issued a decision in Salzberg, et al. v. Sciabacucchi, No. 346, 2019 (Del. Sup. Ct. Mar. 18, 2020), upholding the validity of charter provisions or bylaws that require claims...more
In China Agritech, Inc. v. Resh, the U.S. Supreme Court held that the American Pipe class action tolling rule does not suspend the running of applicable limitations periods for later-filed putative class claims where a...more
6/13/2018
/ Appeals ,
China Agritech Inc v Resh ,
Class Action ,
Class Certification ,
Class Members ,
Equitable Tolling ,
FRCP 23 ,
Putative Class Actions ,
Reversal ,
SCOTUS ,
Securities Fraud ,
Statute of Limitations ,
Subsequent Litigation
On December 13, 2017, the Delaware Supreme Court issued a decision in In re Investors Bancorp, Inc. Stockholder Litigation, holding that director compensation awards made pursuant to an equity compensation plan that permits a...more
The Supreme Court has agreed to decide whether the Securities Litigation Uniform Standards Act of 1998 abolishes state court jurisdiction over class action lawsuits that allege only claims under the Securities Act of 1933....more
In a decision that will have significant implications for M&A litigation involving Massachusetts corporations, on March 6, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court held that a shareholder challenge to a proposed merger...more