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Shareholders Mergers Business Judgment Rule

Allen Matkins

Court: Nevada Allows Controllers To Vote In Their Own Interest

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Yesterday’s post concerned the recent decision by U.S. District Court Judge Charles R. Eskridge in Rowe v. Doris, 2025 WL 963590 (S.D. Tex. Mar. 31, 2025).  The case involved claims arising from the merger of two Nevada...more

Davis Wright Tremaine LLP

Delaware Enacts Sweeping Changes to the Delaware General Corporation Law

The Delaware Legislature passed, and Delaware Gov. Matt Meyer signed on March 25, 2025, the landmark Senate Bill 21. Senate Bill 21 amends the Delaware General Corporation Law (the "DGCL") in significant ways, with broad...more

Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft LLP

In re Oracle Corporation Derivative Litigation: Delaware Supreme Court Affirms Chancery Court Decision Not to Impose Fiduciary...

On January 21, 2025, the Delaware Supreme Court affirmed the Court of Chancery’s decision in In re Oracle Corp. Derivative Lit., finding that a less than 50% stockholder does not owe fiduciary duties absent evidence of either...more

Lathrop GPM

Delaware Supreme Court Clarifies Standard of Review for Conflicted Stockholder Transactions with In re Match Group Opinion

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On April 4, 2024, the Delaware Supreme Court issued its opinion in In re Match Group, Inc. Derivative Litigation, clarifying that the heightened entire fairness standard of review applies to judicial review of any transaction...more

Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP

Delaware Chancery MFW Framework Does Not Require Best Deal

As Kahn v. M&F Worldwide Corp. (MFW) establishes, the Business Judgment Rule must be applied to a transaction involving a controlling shareholder, if the deal is conditioned upon the approval of: (1) an independent special...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

Morris James LLP

Delaware Corporate and Commercial Case Law Year in Review: 2020

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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. Our criteria for selection are that the decision either meaningfully changed...more

Goodwin

Delaware Court of Chancery Denies Motion to Dismiss in Shareholder Class Action Lawsuit Related to Mindbody Inc.'s Billion Dollar...

Goodwin on

Delaware Court of Chancery Denies Motion to Dismiss in Shareholder Class Action Lawsuit Related to Mindbody Inc.’s Billion Dollar Merger with Vista Equity Partners; Second Circuit Unanimously Affirms Lower Court’s Decision...more

Morris James LLP

Belated Use of Special Committee and Uninformed Stockholder Vote Undermine Bid for Business Judgment Review of Going-Private...

Morris James LLP on

The Court of Chancery’s recent decision in Salladay v. Lev, 2020 WL 954032 (Del. Ch. Feb. 27, 2020) denied the director-defendants’ attempt to invoke procedural safeguards – a special committee and independent stockholder...more

Dorsey & Whitney LLP

The Importance of Full Disclosure

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Directors and officers of corporations owe a duty of care and a duty of loyalty to both the corporation and its shareholders, although the duty of care for directors can be exculpated. A breach of these fiduciary duties can...more

Morris James LLP

Chancery Sustains Claims Against Board Chairman who Rolled Over Equity in Going-Private Transaction and Officers Who Crafted...

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Morrison v. Berry, C.A. No. 12808-VCG (Del. Ch. Dec. 31, 2019). Plaintiff, a former stockholder of The Fresh Market, Inc. (the “Company”), brought claims arising out Apollo’s 2016 acquisition of the Company....more

Troutman Pepper Locke

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

Troutman Pepper Locke on

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

White & Case LLP

Defying gravity: US M&A H1 2019: Three key M&A decisions from Delaware courts

White & Case LLP on

The first half of 2019 saw several decisions from the Delaware courts that will affect M&A dealmaking - Aruba: Supreme Court awards "deal price less synergies" in closely watched appraisal case - Rejecting the Chancery...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

Morris James LLP

Chancery Denies Corwin Defense Based on Proxy Omissions and Sustains Claims Against Financial Advisor

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Chester Cty. Emps.’ Ret. Fund v. KCG Holdings, Inc., C.A. No. 2017-0421-KSJM (Del. Ch. June 21, 2019). Under Corwin v. KKR Financial Holdings LLC, 125 A.3d 304 (Del. 2015), Delaware courts generally will dismiss...more

Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP

Delaware Corporation Law: Trends Impacting M&A and Corporate Litigation in 2019

On February 20, 2019, Skadden held a webinar titled “2019 M&A and Corporate Litigation Trends.” The panelists were litigation partner and Delaware litigation practice leader Edward Micheletti and litigation counsel Jenness...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

Fox Rothschild LLP on

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

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

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...

Perkins Coie on

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

Cooley LLP

Blog: Martha Stewart Decision Draws Roadmap for Controller Sales to Third Parties

Cooley LLP on

A transaction involving a controlling stockholder on both sides of the deal presents a clear conflict of interest that will result in heightened scrutiny under the “entire fairness” standard of review if later challenged....more

Morris James LLP

Court Of Chancery Explains Corwin Limits

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This is an important decision if only because it explains a further limitation on the Corwin rule that an informed uncoerced stockholder vote insulates a corporate transaction from attack. First, the decision explains when a...more

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