News & Analysis as of

Controlling Stockholders Shareholder Litigation Mergers

Morris James LLP

Controlling Stockholder Transactions That Do Not Involve a Freeze-Out Merger May Satisfy MFW to Obtain Business Judgment Review

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In Kahn v. M&F Worldwide, 88 A.3d 635 (Del. 2014) (MFW), the Delaware Supreme Court ruled that a controlling stockholder transaction involving a freeze-out merger, which is structured to include approval by a well-functioning...more

A&O Shearman

Delaware Court Of Chancery Holds That Corwin Cleansing Applies To Claims Related To Reduction Of Acquisition Price

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On June 21, 2024, Vice Chancellor Nathan A. Cook of the Delaware Court of Chancery granted a motion to dismiss a putative stockholder class action asserting breach of fiduciary duty claims against the officers and directors...more

Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP

‘Busted Deals’ and Damages: Court of Chancery Clarifies Who Can Recover ‘Lost-Premium’ Damages

In October 2023, Chancellor Kathaleen St. J. McCormick of the Court of Chancery addressed an issue of first impression in Crispo v. Musk, C.A. No 2022-0666-KSJM, holding that “a provision purporting to define a target...more

A&O Shearman

Addressing The Enforceability Of Con Ed Provisions In Merger Agreements, Delaware Court Of Chancery Rejects Petition For...

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On October 31, 2023, Chancellor Kathaleen St. J. McCormick of the Delaware Court of Chancery issued final judgment denying a petition for a mootness fee award to a stockholder—who had previously asserted claims for breach of...more

A&O Shearman

Delaware Court Of Chancery Dismisses Breach Of Fiduciary Duty Claims Against Special Committee Defendants For Failure To Plead...

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On November 30, 2022, Vice Chancellor Glasscock of the Delaware Court of Chancery granted a motion to dismiss claims asserted against directors who served as members of the special committee (the “Special Committee”) of...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

Hogan Lovells

Q3 2021 Quarterly Corporate / M&A decisions updates

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Below is our Corporate / M&A decisions update covering decisions in the third quarter of 2021. This update is designed to highlight selected important M&A, corporate, and commercial court decisions on a quarterly basis. The...more

Cooley LLP

Blog: Pleading Bad Faith Against Special Committee Members: A New Trend?

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Special committees, by design, are created to address conflicts and to insulate the board of directors from liability for the very conflicts that may invite judicial scrutiny of the fairness of the board’s decision. A...more

Fenwick & West LLP

Delaware Supreme Court Holds That Dilution Claims Against a Controller Are Solely Derivative, Overruling Prior Precedent

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On September 20, 2021, the Delaware Supreme Court took the highly unusual step of overruling its prior decision in Gentile v. Rossette. An oft-criticized precedent from 2006, Gentile created an exception allowing minority...more

Dechert LLP

Delaware Court of Chancery Adopts New Framework for Determining whether to Join Minority Stockholders with a Controlling...

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In a decision of interest to private equity investors, the Delaware Court of Chancery (the “Court”) adopted a new framework for determining whether minority stockholders are part of a control group with a separately...more

Morris James LLP

Chancery Dismisses Stockholder Claims that a Minority Owner was a Controlling Stockholder or that a Majority of the Board was...

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In re: Essendant, Inc. Stockholder Litigation, C.A. No. 2018-0789-JRS (Del. Ch. Dec. 30, 2019). When as here a Delaware corporation’s charter contains an exculpation provision under Section 102(b)(7) of the Delaware...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

Morris James LLP

Chancery Denies Motion to Dismiss Claim for Breach of Earn-Out When Unable to “Divine any Meaning” From Provision

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Western Standard, LLC v. SourceHOV Holdings, Inc., C.A. No. 2018-0280-JRS (Del. Ch. July 24, 2019). Defendant Pangea acquired BancTec through a merger agreement that provided for an earn-out to former BancTec stockholders...more

Morris James LLP

Chancery Enjoins Unfair Merger Orchestrated by Controlling Stockholder Pending Corrective Disclosures

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Under Delaware law, majority or controlling stockholders owe fiduciary duties to the company and its minority stockholders. Under certain circumstances, however, a stockholder that owns less than 50 percent of the company’s...more

Morris James LLP

Delaware Corporate and Commercial Case Law Year in Review - 2018

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This top ten list summarizes significant decisions of the Delaware Supreme Court and the Delaware Court of Chancery over the past calendar year 2018. Originally published in Transaction Advisors....more

Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati

2018 Delaware Corporate Law and Litigation Year In Review

In 2018, the Delaware courts issued a broad range of important decisions addressing various corporate law and governance issues. Those decisions are relevant for public and private companies and will help shape...more

Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP

Inside the Courts – An Update From Skadden Securities Litigators - December 2018

This quarter’s issue includes summaries and associated court opinions of selected cases principally decided between September 2018 and October 2018. ...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

A&O Shearman

Delaware Court Of Chancery Validates Ratification Of Defective Corporate Acts Impacting Merger And Declines To Expand Universe Of...

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On August 17, 2018, Chancellor Andre G. Bouchard of the Delaware Court of Chancery denied all of plaintiffs’ claims challenging a series of transactions culminating in the acquisition of defendant Design Within Reach, Inc....more

Morris James LLP

Court of Chancery Validates Cure of Defective Corporate Acts Affecting Herman Miller’s Acquisition of DWR

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Charles Almond Trustee v. Glenhill Advisors LLC, C.A. No. 10477-CB (Del. Ch. Aug. 17, 2018)- Sections 204 and 205 of the DGCL permit corporations to cure and validate defective corporate acts under the right circumstances....more

Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati

Delaware Court Addresses the Information Rights of Designated Directors When Conflict Arises

The Delaware Court of Chancery recently addressed important issues concerning the information rights of directors designated by a significant stockholder, as well as a board committee's ability to withhold information from...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

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