News & Analysis as of

Business Judgment Rule Shareholder Litigation Mergers

Nutter McClennen & Fish LLP

M&A in Brief: Q1 2024

In a letter ruling, the Delaware Chancery Court held that where neither the target nor the acquiror was a Delaware entity, the transaction documents between the parties could not confer jurisdiction in the Chancery Court...more

Hogan Lovells

In re Tesla: fair price may ameliorate procedural defects under entire fairness review - Corporate / M&A Decisions update series

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Tesla Motors Stockholder Litigation arises out of Tesla’s acquisition of SolarCity, a market leader in manufacturing and installing solar energy generation systems. On two occasions in 2015 and 2016, Elon Musk suggested to...more

Goodwin

Delaware Chancery Court Clears Musk of Breach of Fiduciary Duty Claim

Goodwin on

On April 27, 2022, the Delaware Court of Chancery in In re Tesla Motors Stockholder Litigation rendered a post-trial verdict finding for Elon Musk, co-founder and CEO of Tesla Motors, Inc., on claims that Musk breached his...more

BCLP

Delaware Chancery Court Decision Highlights Risks of Liability for Directors in SPAC Deals

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A recent Delaware Chancery Court decision highlights the liability risks faced by directors and sponsors of special purpose acquisition companies (“SPACs”) and the importance of robust disclosure in protecting against those...more

Troutman Pepper

Fraud on the Board: Material Conflicts Must Be Disclosed to the Board to Warrant Business Judgment Review

Troutman Pepper on

A recent decision by the Delaware Supreme Court emphasizes the importance of fully disclosing material director and officer conflicts of interest in connection with proposed M&A transactions. Indeed, as the Court’s ruling...more

A&O Shearman

Delaware Court Of Chancery Holds That A Special Committee Must Be Constituted Ab Initio In Order To Cleanse A Transaction...

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On February 27, 2020, Vice Chancellor Sam Glasscock III denied a motion to dismiss breach of fiduciary duty claims brought by a former stockholder of Intersections, Inc. (the “Company”), challenging the take-private...more

Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP

Key Developments in Delaware Corporation Law

Consistent with trends in recent years, in 2019 Delaware corporation law largely was shaped by post-closing suits for money damages against directors who had approved mergers and acquisitions. Two Delaware Supreme Court...more

Locke Lord LLP

Delaware Recognizes Reality of Merger Negotiations in Upholding Application of Business Judgment Rule

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In In re Towers Watson & Co. Stockholders Litigation, 2019 WL 3334521 (Del. Ch. July 25, 2019), the Delaware Court of Chancery applied the business judgment rule to dismiss a stockholder suit challenging the $18 billion...more

A&O Shearman

Delaware Court Of Chancery Dismisses Stockholder Challenge To Merger For Failure To Rebut Business Judgment Rule

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On July 25, 2019, Vice Chancellor Kathaleen S. McCormick of the Delaware Court of Chancery dismissed a stockholder suit challenging the $18 billion merger of equals between Towers Watson & Co. and Willis Group Holdings plc,...more

Morris James LLP

Chancery Dismisses Merger Challenge Concerning Board’s Delegation of Merger Negotiations and Management’s Undisclosed Compensation...

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In re Towers Watson & Co. Stockholder Litigation, C.A. No. 2018-0132-KSJM (Del. Ch. July 25, 2019). The ultimate responsibility for considering a merger falls on the board to carry out consistent with each directors’...more

Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP

Developments and Trends in US and Japanese M&A

On May 6, 2019, Skadden hosted the Cross-Border M&A Conference 2019, titled “Developments and Trends in US and Japanese M&A.” Key takeaways from the two panel discussions are summarized below....more

A&O Shearman

Delaware Court Of Chancery Applies Corwin To Dismiss Breach Of Fiduciary Duty Claims, Finding Allegations Of A Controlling...

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On March 20, 2019, Chancellor Andre G. Bouchard of the Delaware Court of Chancery dismissed class action claims asserted by former shareholders of NCI, Inc. against its former directors for breach of fiduciary duty in...more

Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP

‘Partial and Elliptical Disclosures’ May Preclude Corwin Doctrine

Under Corwin v. KKR Financial Holdings LLC1 and its progeny, “when disinterested, fully informed, uncoerced stockholders approve a transaction absent a looming conflicted controller,” the irrebuttable business judgment rule...more

Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton LLP

Getting to Business Judgment in an Interested Transaction: Controlling Stockholder Must Put Procedural Protections in Place Prior...

In Flood v. Synutra Int’l, Inc., No. 101, 2018, 2018 Del. LEXIS 460 (Del. Oct. 9, 2018), the Delaware Supreme Court (Strine, C.J.) held that a controlling stockholder who pursues a merger with the controlled company will have...more

Morris James LLP

Delaware Supreme Court Explains the Ab Initio Requirement of MFW

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Flood v. Synutra Int’l, Inc., C.A. No. 101, 2018 (Del. Oct. 9, 2018) - Under Kahn v. M&F Worldwide Corp., 88 A.3d 635 (Del. 2014), commonly referred to as MFW, a controller may gain the benefit of business judgment review...more

Fox Rothschild LLP

“Partial And Elliptical Disclosures” Prevents The Application Of Corwin Business Judgment Review

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In the recent decision of Morrison v. Berry, No. 445, 2017 (Del. July 9, 2018), the Delaware Supreme Court issued an opinion of import in connection with the Corwin doctrine. In Morrison, the High Court reversed a dismissal...more

Morris James LLP

High Court Again Denies 'Corwin' Deference Due to Material Omissions Concerning Sale Process

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Earlier this year, the Delaware Supreme Court held that Corwin deference was not warranted where a recommendation statement to stockholders disclosed that a founder and board chairman abstained from recommending in favor of...more

Morris James LLP

Court Of Chancery Explains When Claim Is Direct And Survives A Merger

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In re Straight Path Communications Inc. Consolidated Stockholder Litigation, C.A. No. 2017-0486-SG (Del. Ch. June 25, 2018) - When a merger closes, stockholders of the acquired company generally lose standing to pursue...more

Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati

New York Court Finds Failure to Meet MFW Standard in Controlling Stockholder Merger

In another significant M&A decision from the New York Supreme Court, the controlling stockholder of a Delaware corporation failed to obtain judicial deference under the so-called "MFW" framework for its merger with the...more

A&O Shearman

Who’s the Boss? Minority Stockholders That Exercise Control

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In two recent cases, the Delaware Court of Chancery provided informative guidance on when stockholders that hold less than 50% of a corporation’s stock are nevertheless considered to be controlling stockholders. This inquiry...more

A&O Shearman

Delaware Court Of Chancery Relies On Corwin To Dismiss Post-Closing Fiduciary Duty Claims After Finding Acquiror Was Not A...

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On March 9, 2018, Vice Chancellor Joseph R. Slights III, of the Delaware Court of Chancery, dismissed a stockholder class action complaint seeking damages for alleged breaches of fiduciary duty by directors of Rouse...more

A&O Shearman

“You’re Not Fully Clean”: § 220 Inspection Demands Under Corwin

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On December 29, 2017, the Delaware Court of Chancery declined to extend the ruling in Corwin by finding that the approval of a merger by a vote of the disinterested stockholders does not act as an impediment to a properly...more

Morris James LLP

Court Of Chancery Expands MFW To Recapitalization

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IRA Trust FBO Bobbie Ahmed v. Crane, C.A.. 12742-CB (December 11, 2017) - This is an important decision because it extends the holding of MFW to a stock reclassification. Under the 6-part test of MFW, the business judgment...more

Morris James LLP

Court Of Chancery Applies Corwin And Test For Control

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Peter Van Der Fluit v. Yates, C.A. No. 12553-VCMR (Nov. 30, 2017) - Briefly, under Corwin, the informed vote of a majority of the disinterested stockholders subjects a transaction to the business judgment rule when the...more

Perkins Coie

In re Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, Inc. Stockholder Litigation: MFW Provides Recipe for Protecting One-Sided Controller...

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In its opinion in In re Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, Inc. Stockholder Litigation,[1] issued in August 2017, the Delaware Chancery Court addressed a question left open under Kahn v. M&F Worldwide Corp.[2] (MFW)—namely,...more

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