2021 was a busy year for corporate governance matters, with new legislation passed early in the year and new enforcement priorities emerging under the Biden administration. Kramer Levin lawyers published numerous articles...more
1/6/2022
/ Anti-Money Laundering ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Caremark claim ,
Corporate Governance ,
Cybersecurity ,
Diversity and Inclusion Standards (D&I) ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
FinCEN ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Public Comment ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
On Nov. 23, the New York Court of Appeals held in a 6-1 ruling that an investment firm’s $140 million disgorgement payment to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) was not a “penalt[y] imposed by law” under the firm’s...more
In its recent decision in Yatra Online, Inc. v. Ebix, Inc., Case No. 2020-0444-JRS, 2021 WL 3855514 (Del. Ch. Aug. 30, 2021) (Slights, V.C.), the Delaware Court of Chancery dismissed plaintiff’s breach of contract and other...more
As we have discussed in prior client alerts, in the wake of the Delaware Supreme Court’s decision in Salzberg v. Sciabacucci (Salzberg), 227 A.3d 102 (Del. 2020), several California state courts have dismissed claims against...more
In a significant decision, the Delaware Court of Chancery recently denied a motion to dismiss, thus allowing discovery to proceed, on a Caremark claim against the directors of The Boeing Company (Boeing), arising out of the...more
Securities fraud litigation based on regulatory mishaps, environmental disasters, data breaches, sexual harassment revelations, the COVID-19 pandemic and other well-publicized events that affect stock prices has been on the...more
9/3/2021
/ Anti-Money Laundering ,
Class Action ,
Duty to Disclose ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Federal Pleading Requirements ,
Financial Statements ,
Material Misstatements ,
Money Laundering ,
Puffery ,
Securities Fraud ,
Shareholder Litigation ,
Stock Drop Litigation
Prior to the Delaware Court of Chancery’s opinion in Akorn, Inc. v. Fresenius Kabi AG, C.A. No. 2018-0300-JTL, 2018 WL 4719347 (Del. Ch. Oct. 1, 2018), aff’d 198 A.3d 724 (Del. 2018), no Delaware court had found the existence...more
On July 13, 2021, the Securities and Exchange Commission announced partially settled charges against the Special Purpose Acquisition Company Stable Road Acquisition Co. (SRA), SRA’s sponsor and CEO, SRA’s target Momentus Inc....more
Last week, the U.S. Supreme Court granted the petition for a writ of certiorari in Pivotal Software v. Tran, a case that could have significant implications for Securities Act of 1933 (Securities Act) cases brought in state...more
On June 21, the U.S. Supreme Court issued its long-awaited decision in Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. et al. v. Arkansas Teacher Retirement System et al. The Court held that in ruling on class certification in a securities action,...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
We have discussed in previous alerts a spate of shareholder lawsuits alleging corporate fiduciary breaches and securities law violations tied to the defendant company’s alleged failure to fulfill diversity aspirations. ...more
Most of the recent shareholder litigation that has followed the current wave of Special Purpose Acquisition Company (SPAC) offerings and associated business combinations has been based on federal securities law claims. ...more
Ransomware threats and attacks dominated the cyber news cycle in 2020 and into 2021. With the global pandemic and the uptick in remote work and learning, cybercriminals and nation-state hackers have seized on vulnerabilities...more
2/10/2021
/ Cryptocurrency ,
Cyber Attacks ,
Cyber Insurance ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Breach ,
Hackers ,
NYDFS ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Popular ,
Ransomware ,
Risk Management ,
Underwriting
As previously discussed in our Sept. 10, 2020, client alert, in Wong v. Restoration Robotics, Inc., Case No. 18-CIV-02609 (Cal. Super. Ct. Sept. 1, 2020), the Superior Court of California for the County of San Mateo dismissed...more
12/23/2020
/ Bylaws ,
Certificates of Incorporation ,
Corporate Issuers ,
Cyan Inc v Beaver Cty Emps Ret Fund ,
D&O Insurance ,
Forum Selection ,
Initial Public Offering (IPO) ,
Publicly-Traded Companies ,
Securities Act of 1933 ,
Securities Litigation ,
Securities Violations
On Dec. 11, 2020, the Supreme Court granted certiorari in Arkansas Teacher Retirement System, et al. v. Goldman Sachs Group, Inc., to review a decision by the Second Circuit Court of Appeals upholding certification of an...more
12/17/2020
/ Arkansas Teacher Retirement System v Goldman Sachs Group ,
Basic v Levinson ,
Burden of Persuasion ,
Burden of Proof ,
Certiorari ,
Class Action ,
Class Certification ,
Conflicts of Interest ,
Goldman Sachs ,
Investors ,
Presumption of Reliance ,
SCOTUS ,
Securities Exchange Act ,
Securities Litigation ,
Shareholders
In Wong v. Restoration Robotics, Inc., Case No. 18CIV02609 (Cal. Sup. Ct. Sept. 1, 2020), the Superior Court of California for the County of San Mateo recently dismissed claims against an issuer and its directors and officers...more
Can management of a Delaware corporation block members of the board of directors from gaining access to the company’s privileged information? The Delaware Court of Chancery recently addressed this question in the ongoing...more
9/1/2020
/ Board Members ,
Board of Directors ,
Conflicts of Interest ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Corporate Governance ,
Corporate Sales Transactions ,
Discovery Disputes ,
First Impression ,
Joint Clients ,
Privileged Communication ,
SoftBank ,
Special Committees
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
On April 7, in Arkansas Teacher Retirement System, et al. v. Goldman Sachs Group, Inc., a Second Circuit panel declined to narrow the scope of the inflation-maintenance theory of securities fraud and split 2-1 in affirming...more
In its 2011 Janus decision, the Supreme Court emphasized that SEC Rule 10b-5 imposes liability for a false statement in connection with a securities transaction only on the “maker” of the statement, the “person or entity with...more
4/3/2019
/ Appeals ,
Enforcement Actions ,
False Statements ,
Fines ,
Intent to Defraud ,
Investment Banks ,
Lorenzo v SEC ,
Material Dissemination ,
Misleading Statements ,
Reaffirmation ,
Rule 10b-5 ,
SCOTUS ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Violations ,
Suspensions
On Nov. 14, 2018, a New York appellate court held that in a derivative action brought in a New York court against a company incorporated in the United Kingdom, the plaintiff need not comply with U.K. Companies Act § 261(1)...more
12/3/2018
/ Anti-Money Laundering ,
Appeals ,
Article III ,
Corporate Misconduct ,
Derivative Suit ,
Financial Institutions ,
Foreign Corporations ,
HSBC ,
Shareholders ,
Standing ,
UK ,
UK Companies Acts
In the purchase agreement for the typical M&A transaction, the seller gives the buyer representations and warranties concerning key questions affecting the value of the target company. ...more
On Nov. 20, 2017, the New York Court of Appeals held that in a derivative action brought in a New York court against a company incorporated in the Cayman Islands, the plaintiff need not comply with Rule 12A of the Cayman...more
On June 27, the Supreme Court granted certiorari in Cyan Inc. et al. v. Beaver County Employees Retirement Fund et al., agreeing to weigh in on whether state courts have jurisdiction to hear class action lawsuits brought...more
7/6/2017
/ Class Action ,
Cyan Inc v Beaver Cty Emps Ret Fund ,
Jurisdiction ,
PSLRA ,
Removal ,
SCOTUS ,
Securities Act ,
Securities Act of 1933 ,
Securities Litigation ,
SLUSA ,
Split of Authority ,
Statutory Interpretation
On June 26, 2017, the Supreme Court issued a 5-4 decision in California Public Employees’ Retirement System v. ANZ Securities, Inc., et al. (“CalPERS”) (No. 16–373, 2017 WL 2722415) (U.S. June 26, 2017), holding that the...more
6/30/2017
/ CalPERS v ANZ Securities ,
Class Action ,
Equitable Tolling ,
Opt-Outs ,
Pension Funds ,
Public Offerings ,
SCOTUS ,
Section 11 ,
Section 13 ,
Securities Act ,
Securities Act of 1933 ,
Securities Fraud ,
Securities Litigation ,
Statute of Limitations ,
Statute of Repose ,
Underwriting