In Kellner v. AIM ImmunoTech Inc., the Delaware Supreme Court affirmed in part and reversed in part the Delaware Court of Chancery’s closely watched ruling, which invalidated several provisions in the bylaws of AIM ImmunoTech...more
In a much-anticipated decision, the Delaware Supreme Court echoed the Court of Chancery's pronouncement that advance notice bylaws adopted amid an approaching proxy contest are reviewed through the lens of enhanced judicial...more
Under Delaware law, director actions are twice-tested: first for legal authorization under a company’s organizational documents or positive law, and second under equitable fiduciary principles. A company’s organizational...more
In This Issue. The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) and the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (together, the Agencies) issued a final rule...more
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approved mandatory “universal proxy” on November 17, 2021. The final rules will apply to contested director elections at shareholder meetings held after August 31, 2022. The...more
Recently, UCLA Law School Professor posed the question "Why do boards get to spend corporate money to fight off proxy contests?" His answer is answer "because the courts say so". In California, it is because the...more
On January 30, 2020, the Federal Reserve Board (the “Board”) adopted final rules (the “Final Control Regulation”) to provide increased transparency and consistency around determining when an investor company has “control”...more
On January 30, the Federal Reserve released a highly anticipated final rule that substantially updates and clarifies the agency's regulatory framework for determining when an investor exercises a controlling influence over a...more
On January 13, 2020, the Delaware Supreme Court issued an opinion addressing deadlines and supplemental information requirements under advance notice bylaws. In the opinion, BlackRock Credit Allocation Income Trust v. Saba...more
Recently, the frequency of stockholder demands to inspect corporate books and records pursuant to Section 220 of the Delaware General Corporation Law has increased. In turn, the case law concerning Section 220 demands is...more
In High River Limited Partnership v. Occidental Petroleum Corp., C.A. No. 2019-0403-JRS, 2019 WL 6040285 (Del. Ch. Nov. 14, 2019) (Slights, V.C.), the Delaware Court of Chancery held that a stockholder’s mere disagreement...more
Shareholder activism remains pervasive in the corporate landscape, as many companies continue to face new, and sometimes more sophisticated, activist situations. Recent activism-related trends indicate that the landscape is...more
The Background: An insurgent won control of the board of directors of EQT Corporation in a proxy contest using a so-called "universal proxy card." The Issue: While the merits of universal ballots remain subject to debate,...more
The Federal Reserve Board (FRB) recently issued a proposed rule that would codify and clarify when a company is presumed to have a controlling influence over the management and policies of a second company (Proposed...more
On June 4, 2019, a hedge fund managed by Saba Capital Management L.P. filed lawsuits in Delaware Chancery Court and in Maryland Circuit Court against three BlackRock-managed registered closed-end funds, the trustees/directors...more
Two courts recently issued significant corporate law decisions that are meaningful for corporations and investors navigating an M&A transaction or a proxy contest. Interestingly, both decisions arose outside of Delaware,...more
On March 28, 2018, Skadden hosted the webinar “Navigating the Current Landscape of Shareholder Activism,” the fifth and final program in the 2017-18 SEC Reporting & Compliance and Corporate Governance Series. The panelists...more
In a December 8th decision (Sarissa Capital Domestic Fund LP, et. al. v. Innoviva, Inc.), the Delaware Court of Chancery ruled in favor of Sarissa Capital Domestic Fund LP and certain of its affiliates in concluding that...more
Sarissa Capital Domestic Fund LP v. Innoviva Inc., C.A. 2017-0309-JRS (December 8, 2017) - This is a great explanation of when a director is authorized to enter into an oral agreement that is enforceable, here to add two...more
Several recent decisions applying Delaware law offer helpful insight about the impact that activist investor involvement has on board decision-making leading to a transaction and how those decisions will be reviewed by the...more
Earlier this month, General Motors ("GM") won a decisive victory in a proxy contest waged by Greenlight Capital, the activist fund headed by David Einhorn. Greenlight claimed that GM's shares, which were trading at a price...more
On October 26, 2016, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) released proposed rules that would require the use of “universal” proxies in connection with contested elections of directors. If adopted, these rules would...more
This report offers an overview of the state of activism in Europe, as well as country-specific profiles for the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy and Switzerland, including information and commentary on noteworthy...more
Many private equity, hedge and mutual funds constantly have to confront the complex control rules that may impact even the smallest of investments in banks or bank holding companies (BHCs). The issue may be as simple as...more
After a lengthy, acrimonious and costly proxy contest to remove three directors of Taseko Mines Limited (“Taseko”) and elect its own nominees, in early May, 2016, activist investor Raging River Capital LP (“Raging River”)...more