Episode 2: Chris Mercer Interview on Marketability Discount: Part 2
On 4 February 2025, Martin J handed down judgment in Glendina Pty Limited & Ors v NKWE Platinum Ltd (2025) SC (Bda) 15 Civ. It is the first “fair value” appraisal claim on a merger or amalgamation under the Companies Act 1981...more
“When the facts change, I change my mind. What do you do?” - Sir John Maynard Keynes - Our waking hours are bombarded with more information than can be absorbed. From 2009 to 2017, the amount of data that enters the human...more
There are many paths to a fair value appraisal proceeding. A road less traveled begins at Section 910 of the Business Corporation Law (the “BCL”). ...more
Statutory fair value appraisal proceedings in New York come in two flavors. First, there’s the buy-out appraisal under Business Corporation Law § 1118 triggered by a minority shareholder’s petition for judicial dissolution....more
Valuation discounts can and often do play an outsized role in contested appraisal proceedings involving the valuation of equity interests in closely held business entities for which there is no public market....more
On July 9 and October 12, 2020, the Delaware Supreme Court added two more opinions to its growing suite of recent appraisal decisions underscoring the prominence of market-based factors in determining fair value. In Fir Tree...more
The Situation: Stockholders sought appraisal—judicial determination of the "fair value" of their stock—in connection with a merger. The Delaware Court of Chancery found that the fair value was equal to the company's...more
In recent decisions, the Delaware Court of Chancery continued to follow the Delaware Supreme Court’s mandate from Aruba, Dell and DFC to rely on market-based metrics, when available, to determine fair value in appraisal...more
Three recent Delaware Court of Chancery appraisal decisions offer a wealth of guidance not only regarding the determination of a merger partner’s fair value, but also regarding elements that potentially undermine a quality...more
Over the years, we’ve written a lot about limited partnership, corporation, and LLC “fair value” appraisal proceedings....more
Two recent decisions by the Delaware Court of Chancery underscore that the outcome of an appraisal proceeding often will turn on the quality of a company’s sale process. ...more
In 2015, Hewlett Packard acquired Aruba for a negotiated price of $24.67 per share, or about $2.8 billion. Several stockholders sought appraisal. On February 15, the Delaware Court of Chancery found that, for purposes of...more
On February 15, 2018, the Delaware Court of Chancery issued its post-trial decision in Verition Partners Master Fund Ltd. v. Aruba Networks, Inc., a statutory appraisal proceeding arising from Hewlett-Packard's 2015...more
On December 14, the Delaware Supreme Court released a long-awaited opinion in Dell Inc. v. Magnetar Global Event Driven Master Fund Ltd. that reversed and remanded a high-profile appraisal case decided by the Delaware Court...more
Statutory appraisal actions remain one of the most closely watched areas of Delaware corporate law, and there have been significant developments in Delaware appraisal law. Recently, the Delaware Supreme Court provided...more
In a long-awaited decision regarding Delaware’s appraisal statute, the Delaware Supreme Court ruled that in determining the fair value of a company, there is no presumption that the agreed upon transaction price is the fair...more
If you haven't already listened to Episode 1/Part 1 of my interview with Chris Mercer, in which Chris discusses the fundamentals of the controversy surrounding application of the marketability discount in statutory fair value...more
On December 16, 2016, the Delaware Court of Chancery issued a post-trial opinion in an appraisal proceeding arising from the acquisition of Lender Processing Services, Inc. (“LPS” or the “Company”) by Fidelity National...more
This update provides a summary of recent Delaware caselaw and statutory developments concerning mergers and acquisitions, including new cases regarding appraisal rights, fraud claims and fiduciary duty and deal process...more
In a recent decision in an appraisal action, the Delaware Chancery Court reaffirmed the Court’s reluctance to substitute its own calculation of the “fair value” of a target company’s stock for the purchase price derived...more