Episode 021: Member Liquidity, Default Rules, and the Corporate-ization of LLCs: A Conversation with Dean Donald J. Weidner
Episode 3: Professor Peter Molk Interview on Drafting Around LLC Default Rules
Soleimani v. Hakkak, C.A. No. 2023-0948-LWW (Del. Ch. Apr. 12, 2024) - The defendants attempted to remove a manager-employee of several limited liability companies. The manager filed suit, and the parties moved for summary...more
DiDonato v. Campus Eye Management, LLC, C.A. No. 2023-0671-LWW (Del. Ch. Jan. 31, 2024) - In governance disputes among LLC constituencies, the operating agreement is the beginning and often end point. This action involved...more
In Holifield v. XRI Investment Holdings LLC, No. 407, 2022 (Del. Sept. 7, 2023), the Delaware Supreme Court affirmed the lower court’s determination that the defendant violated XRI Investment Holdings’ LLC agreement when he...more
VH5 Capital, LLC v. Jeremiah Rabe, C.A. No. 2020-0315-NAC (Del. Ch. June 30, 2023) - The at-issue LLC had two members – the defendant and the plaintiff, both of whom also constituted the company's board. The company never...more
In the iconic “The Princess Bride,” Miracle Max observes that there is a big difference between “all dead” and “mostly dead” and then goes on to prove it. In Holifield v. XRI Investment LLC, 2023 WL 5761367 (Del. Supr. Sept....more
One feature commonly seen in commercial lending transactions is a waiver of the borrower’s authority to file for bankruptcy without the consent of the lender. While such “blocking” provisions are generally upheld where the...more
Folks hearing the phrase “business divorce” for the first time tend to focus unconsciously on the word “divorce,” tuning out the word “business.” The irony is that most business divorce cases have nothing to do with...more
Let’s see how good you are at predicting the outcome and its rationale in a recently decided case involving the following facts: The controller of a Delaware LLC has supermajority voting rights under the initial LLC...more
In XRI Investment Holdings LLC v. Holifield, C.A. No. 2021-0619-JTL, the Court of Chancery found that defendant Holifield violated a No Transfer Provision in the limited liability company agreement of XRI Investment Holdings...more
XRI Investment Holdings LLC v. Holifield, et al., C.A. No. 2021-0619-JTL (Del. Ch. Sept. 13, 2022) - Under precedents such as CompoSecure, L.L.C. v. CardUX, LLC (Del. 2018), acts defined by an LLC agreement as “void” or...more
W.D.C. Holdings, LLC v. IPI Partners, LLC, C.A. No. 2020-1026-JTL (Del. Ch. June 22, 2022) - Two entities entered into a joint venture to develop data centers for Amazon. One entity managed the joint venture day to day,...more
In CompoSecure v. CardUX, 206 A.3d 808 (Del. 2018), the Delaware Supreme Court held that when parties use the word “void” to describe the consequences of a noncompliant act under an LLC agreement, the act is deemed void ab...more
Many new businesses chose to establish limited liability companies (LLC) because of the protection from individual liability, the benefit of pass-through taxation, and the form’s inherent flexibility. Certain types of...more
One of the goals in a business divorce is finality – ending a business relationship once and for all. But what if the end isn’t really the end?...more
In re Dissolution of Jeffco Management, LLC, C.A. No. 2018-0027-PAF (Del. Ch. Aug. 16, 2021) - When the Court of Chancery appoints a receiver to effectuate a company’s dissolution, certain determinations are subject to de...more
In re Coinmint, LLC, C.A. No. 2019-0983-MTZ (Del. Ch. Aug. 12, 2021) - This decision illustrates that, in specific circumstances, the equitable defenses of waiver, acquiescence, and estoppel may preclude a party from...more
In Re Cadira Group Holdings, LLC Litigation, Consolidated C.A. No. 2018-0616-JRS (Del. Ch. July 12, 2021) - The Delaware Limited Liability Company Act provides that “the fiduciary duties of a member, manager, or other...more
The 2021 amendments to the Delaware General Corporation Law (the DGCL), the Delaware Revised Uniform Partnership Act (the DRUPA), the Delaware Revised Uniform Limited Partnership Act (the DRULPA), and the Delaware Limited...more
Springing Members are a tool that a structured finance Lender can use to reduce the risk that a Borrower will dissolve under state law. Under most state laws, an LLC that does not have at least one member will dissolve. ...more
Smith v. Scott, C.A. No. 2020-0263-JRS (Del. Ch. Apr. 23, 2021) - The Delaware LLC Act provides that fiduciary duties may be expanded or limited by the provisions of an LLC agreement. If the agreement is silent, then...more
Pearl City Elevator, Inc. v. Gieseke, C.A. No. 2020-0419-JRS (Del. Ch. Mar. 23, 2021) - Under Delaware law, limited liability company agreements are interpreted like other contracts; they are read as a whole in light of...more
Robinson v. Darbeau, C.A. No: 2019-0853-KSJM (Del. Ch. Mar. 1, 2021) - As Robinson v. Darbeau demonstrates, Delaware law recognizes implied limited liability company agreements. Plaintiff operated a daycare as a sole...more
AG Resource Holdings, LLC v. Thomas Badford Terral, C.A. No. 2020-0850-JRS (Feb. 10, 2021) - In AG Resource, the Court of Chancery was tasked with determining whether it or a Louisiana state court should resolve similar...more
In business, as in marriage, financial problems put stress on a relationship and are a common cause of divorce. No business divorce is easy, but partners who have ahead of time vetted governance, dispute resolution,...more
International Rail Partners LLC v. American Rail Partners, LLC, C.A. No. 2020-0177-PAF (Del. Ch. Nov. 24, 2020) - The Delaware Limited Liability Company Act (the “LLC Act”) allows a limited liability company (“LLC”) to...more