After two decades practicing law in Silicon Valley and five formative years working on cross-border deals in Europe, I’ve come to appreciate the subtle (and not-so-subtle) differences in how merger and acquisition (M&A)...more
Recent shifts in international tariff policies have created significant uncertainty for US importers. As a buyer, revisiting your supply contracts now can help safeguard your business from unexpected costs and disruptions. ...more
Negotiating and signing a Letter of Intent (LOI) is a key inflection point in the process of selling your business. Buyers and sellers both want the LOI to ensure a base level of understanding on certain key terms such as...more
This year’s M&A Report offers a detailed review of the M&A market and outlook, including a breakdown by various geographies and industry sectors. We examine what might be in store with antitrust and CFIUS under the Trump...more
In most M&A deals involving private targets (including the sales of divisions of publicly traded companies), the purchase agreement will include a baseline dollar value for the target, with several adjustments. Often, the...more
In the complex world of business transactions, particularly mergers and acquisitions (M&A), purchase price adjustments are a critical concept that help ensure fairness and accuracy in the final transaction price. Purchase...more
President-elect Donald Trump recently stated on November 25, 2024, his intention to impose tariffs of 25% on all goods coming from Mexico and Canada on his first day in office unless those countries do more to stop the flow...more
Two recent Delaware Superior Court opinions are essential reading for M&A practitioners drafting language with respect to how disputes related to purchase price adjustments, earnouts, and other accounting-related...more
The M&A landscape is beginning to evolve, with shifts in market dynamics shaping deal terms and bargaining dynamics for 2024 and beyond....more
On February 28, 2024, the Delaware Court of Chancery “reluctantly” confirmed an arbitrator’s award, leaving many in the private equity community surprised. This decision led to MP Seller Holdings LLC (Seller), seller of a $40...more
What is the typical size of an adjustment escrow? A common rule of thumb is 1% of overall deal value, but the size varies depending on deal value and the underlying characteristics of the business (including the net working...more
Net Working Capital (“NWC”) targets and purchase price adjustments are a nearly universal reality in private M&A deals, though often a neglected and misunderstood topic. To greatly simplify, the NWC target is the minimum...more
The Private Target Mergers & Acquisitions Deal Points Study (“the Study”) is published on a bi-annual basis by the Market Trends Subcommittee of the ABA Business Law Section’s M&A Committee, which I am happy to serve on. The...more
In a recent order, the Delaware Court of Chancery “reluctantly” confirmed an arbitrator’s award arising from a post-closing purchase price adjustment dispute between a seller of a chain of grocery stores and a private equity...more
In mergers and acquisitions (M&A) transactions, the definitive purchase agreement, whether asset purchase agreement, stock purchase agreement, or merger agreement, typically contains provisions for post-closing purchase price...more
Despite a recent slowdown in global M&A activity, the private M&A market in both the US and the UK remains intensely competitive due to an abundance of available capital. As a consequence, and in order to present potential...more
By now, probably everyone that works in M&A or private equity has heard of the concept of a locked box as an alternative to completion accounts (or, in the U.S., “closing accounts”) on a deal....more
Market Trends: What You Need to Know - As shown in the American Bar Association's Private Target Mergers and Acquisitions Deal Point Studies: The use of separate escrows for purchase price adjustments has been...more
Purchase price adjustment mechanisms are common in private M&A transactions to determine the final price to be paid by the buyer. However, the manner in which the price adjustment is achieved varies by jurisdiction. In the...more
Market Trends: What You Need to Know - Based on the American Bar Association's Private Target Mergers and Acquisitions Deal Points Studies: - Purchase price adjustments continue to be commonplace in M&A agreements. In...more
A key to success for any growth company is navigating the numbers, with success and visibility in accounting and finance, preferably up and to the right. Nowadays, companies are experiencing accounting challenges as they...more
Buyers, sellers, their counsel and other advisers sometimes give short shrift to post-closing adjustment provisions in M&A deals; however, it’s important to make sure that language and calculation methods are clear and don’t...more
In LDC Parent, LLC v. Essential Utilities, Inc. (C.A. No. N20C-08-127-MMJ-CCLD (Del. Super. Apr. 28, 2021)), the Delaware Superior Court held that a post-closing purchase price adjustment dispute had to be resolved by an...more
If you are an investor buying a leased property, you are undoubtedly looking to the rental income as the return on your investment, in addition to the appreciation in the value of the property that is likely to occur over...more
Market Trends: What You Need to Know As shown in the American Bar Association's Private Target Mergers and Acquisitions Deal Point Studies: - The use of separate escrows for purchase price adjustments has been increasing on...more