Coverage Litigation Leapfrog: Why Venue Matters and How to Avoid Pre-emptive Strike Actions
Law School Toolbox Podcast Episode 267: Listen and Learn -- UCC 2-207 ("The Battle of the Forms")
Podcast: IP Life Sciences Landscape: Aiding Orange and Purple Book Patent Owners in Developing PTAB Survival Skills
Meritas Capability Webinar - Controlling Where to Fight and Who Pays for it?
Forum-selection provisions have become an increasingly common tool for managing corporate litigation risks. By including these provisions in their charters or bylaws, corporations can designate an exclusive forum — most...more
Ten years ago, I questioned in this space whether a Delaware forum selection charter provision would survive constitutional scrutiny if it involved a de facto waiver of a jury trial...more
The en banc Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit affirmed the dismissal of a shareholder derivative action in light of an exclusive-forum bylaw requiring assertion of derivative claims in the Delaware Court of Chancery,...more
S’holders Rep. Serv. LLC v. DC Capital Partners Fund II, L.P., C.A. No. 2021-0465-KSJM (Del. Ch. Feb. 14, 2022) - While the Court of Chancery has exclusive subject matter jurisdiction over claims and remedies sounding in...more
The Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit affirmed the dismissal of a shareholder derivative action in light of an exclusive-forum bylaw requiring assertion of derivative claims in the Delaware Court of Chancery, even though...more
Mack v. Rev Worldwide, Inc., C.A. No. 2019-0123-MTZ (Del. Ch. Dec. 30, 2020) - Plaintiff loaned defendant $2.5 million through six secured convertible promissory notes. Each of the notes contained an exclusive forum...more
On July 8, 2019, Vice Chancellor J. Travis Laster of the Delaware Court of Chancery awarded $3 million to plaintiffs’ lawyers in Sciabacucchi v. Salzberg, C.A. No. 2017-0931-JTL (Del. Ch. July 8, 2019). As we discussed in a...more
On February 20, 2019, Skadden held a webinar titled “2019 M&A and Corporate Litigation Trends.” The panelists were litigation partner and Delaware litigation practice leader Edward Micheletti and litigation counsel Jenness...more
In part one of this two-part series, we discussed two of four recent developments in Delaware law that reduce the liability exposure of corporate boards and controlling stockholders in merger transactions, and also benefit...more
On June 24, 2015, the governor of Delaware signed into law legislation that amends the Delaware General Corporation Law (Title 8 of the Delaware Code) (“DGCL”) to effectively prohibit fee-shifting bylaw provisions in the...more
The Corporation Law Section of the Delaware State Bar Association recently approved amendments to the General Corporation Law of the State of Delaware (the “Proposed DGCL Amendments”), which would prohibit Delaware stock...more
An interesting Delaware Supreme Court decision just before the holidays may have escaped many people’s attention. In United Technologies Corp. v. Treppel, the Court concluded in the context of stockholder inspection rights...more
Previously we have discussed Delaware court decisions upholding forum selection bylaws requiring suits involving a corporation’s internal affairs to be filed in a specified court, such as the Delaware Court of Chancery. Last...more
In City of Providence v. First Citizens BancShares Inc. et al., C.A. No. 9795-CB (Del. Ch. Sept. 8, 2014), the Delaware Court of Chancery (Bouchard, C.) held that a minority shareholder's claims against a Delaware...more
In City of Providence v. First Citizens BancShares, Inc. (Del. Ch. September 8, 2014), the Delaware Court of Chancery upheld a forum selection bylaw that designated North Carolina as the exclusive forum for certain...more
“Exclusive forum” bylaws and charter provisions are a powerful tool for managing the risk of parallel corporate governance litigation against a company and its directors in multiple forums, allowing stockholders to bring such...more
Fending off merger-related shareholder lawsuits keeps getting easier. Just a week ago, the Delaware Chancery Court upheld the enforceability of the bylaw of a Delaware corporation headquartered in North Carolina that selected...more
When almost 98 percent of takeover transactions valued at more than $100 million result in shareholder litigation, and often such transactions are the subject of multiple lawsuits filed in multiple jurisdictions, it is no...more
At first glance, the plaintiff’s position in Bushansky v. Armacost, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 88072 (N.D. Cal. June 25, 2014) seems a bit peculiar. The plaintiff had filed suit challenging Chevron Corporation’s adoption of an...more
In March, Safeway and Albertsons announced that they had entered into a definitive merger agreement. As night follows day, litigation ensued. At least 12 class action complaints were filed by alleged stockholders of...more
For Delaware corporations facing a rising tide of strike suits, the Delaware Court of Chancery’s June 25, 2013 Boilermakers decision upholding the validity of “exclusive forum” bylaws adopted by Chevron Corporation and FedEx...more