Litigation developments: core M&A and corporate governance doctrines
Will COVID-19 Qualify as a ‘Material Adverse Effect’?
MAE Clauses: Troutman Sanders and Pepper Hamilton COVID-19 Litigation Podcast Series
Over the past 15+ years covered by the ABA studies, materiality scrapes have morphed from being a somewhat uncommon provision, seen in about 14% of transactions in 2005, to something near-ubiquitous in M&A purchase...more
Recent Delaware cases appear to make two things clear. First, it remains extremely unlikely that a court will find an event or occurrence to fall within the general provisions of a Material Adverse Effect condition and as a...more
On July 9, 2021, the Delaware Court of Chancery (Slights, V.C.) issued an opinion in Bardy Diagnostics, Inc. v. Hill-Rom, Inc., No. 2021-0175-JRS, concluding that the requirements of a “material adverse effect” (“MAE”) clause...more
In late November of last year, the Court of Chancery in Delaware handed down a decision in a case called AB Stable VIII LLC v. MAPS Hotels and Resorts One, LLC ...more
In a late night, 242-page decision, the Delaware Court of Chancery ruled that the buyer in a purchase and sale agreement was relieved of its obligation to close and could terminate the agreement as a result of the changes...more
A Material Adverse Effect clause in an SPA excluded conditions resulting from a pandemic except where those conditions would have a disproportionate effect on the target companies as compared to companies in the “industries”...more
In just about every way, the world turned upside down in 2020. Deals were no exception. Whether it was incorporating a PPP payoff or forgiveness into deal terms, drafting MAE, interim operating covenants and working capital...more
Market Trends: What You Need to Know - Over the past almost 15 years covered by the ABA studies, materiality scrapes have morphed from being a somewhat uncommon provision, seen in about 14% of transactions in 2005, to...more
Your company has navigated the first six months of COVID, but what is around the corner? In this program, our lawyers will provide some clarity around the various legal issues that are, or could be, affected as we move...more
The outbreak of the novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and the uncertainty surrounding its long-term implications have caused a noticeable disruption in the consummation of mergers and acquisitions (M&A) transactions....more
Troutman Sanders and Pepper Hamilton are producing a series of podcasts to discuss litigation topics that have been brought to the forefront by the COVID-19 pandemic and how businesses might be able to prepare and respond. ...more
Uncertainty continues to loom over the M&A market as organizations that were actively involved in transactions before the COVID-19 pandemic assess risks stemming from reduced valuations, condensed financing options, the...more
COVID-19 is likely to have a significant impact on the (non-)performance of commercial contracts across all sectors. This note provides a high-level checklist of some of the key issues to consider when dealing with an actual...more
It is readily apparent that the COVID-19 pandemic has had an impact on transactional activity—at least in the short term—for both buyers and sellers across a range of industries. Whether parties are still moving forward with...more
The novel coronavirus (COVID-19) has been declared a global pandemic by the World Health Organization (WHO). The virus has spread across continents, taken an enormous human toll, and disrupted business operations throughout...more
In the last few weeks, we have seen a variety of domestic and cross-border mergers and acquisitions (M&A) and private equity transactions move forward, but in some cases we have seen bid processes being put on hold and the...more
Acquisition agreements customarily address risk associated with significant downward changes to the target’s business prior to closing through a variety of provisions, including through the use of the “material adverse...more
Goodwin has written extensively on the challenges presented by the COVID-19 coronavirus... among these important issues, we also want to encourage our clients to be proactive in responding to the potential impact of COVID-19...more
2018’s landmark decision Akorn, Inc. v. Fresenius Kabi AG marked the first time that the Chancery Court upheld a buyer’s use of a Material Adverse Effect (MAE) clause to terminate a merger agreement. However, the Court’s...more
A year after Akorn v. Fresenius (Akorn case), the first Delaware case holding that a party was entitled to terminate a merger agreement based on a material adverse effect (MAE), the Delaware Court of Chancery, in Channel...more
On December 7, 2018, the Delaware Supreme Court affirmed the Court of Chancery's decision in Akorn, Inc. v. Fresenius Kabi AG , C.A. No. 2018-0300-JTL, which upheld, for the first time under Delaware law, the ability of a...more
On October 1, in Akorn v. Fresenius Kabi, the Delaware Court of Chancery for the first time found that a material adverse effect — or MAE — had occurred in a merger transaction, which, combined with other breaches of the...more
On October 1, 2018, Vice Chancellor J. Travis Laster of the Delaware Court of Chancery issued a 246-page post-trial opinion in Akorn, Inc. v. Fresenius Kabi AG, C.A. No. 2018-0300-JTL, that denied the seller’s (Akorn) request...more
Summary: - A perfect storm of facts in Akorn, Inc. v. Fresenius Kabi AG et al. allowed the Delaware Chancery Court to conclude that Fresenius could properly terminate its obligations to acquire Akorn without liability,...more
In Akorn, Inc. v. Fresenius Kabi AG, the Delaware Chancery Court held that Fresenius, a German pharmaceutical company, was justified in invoking a “material adverse event” (MAE) clause to terminate its $4.8 billion merger...more