Has the SPAC Bubble Burst? Part 2: The SEC’s New Rules
Has the SPAC Bubble Burst? Lessons Learned From the Early Days of SPAC Mania
FCPA Compliance Report - Karen Woody on JPMorgan and Nikola SEC Enforcement Actions
Compliance Into The Weeds - Year End Review, Part 1
Compliance Into The Weeds - Red Flags and SPACs
Reps & Warranties Insurance: Sealing The Deal
Understanding SPAC Transactions: What it Takes to Be “SPAC Ready"
Don’t Step on a Crack in the SPAC/deSPAC Insurance Claim Process
Fast Track to IPO: Why Are Series A Startups Snatching Topflight CFOs?
The Brave New Frontier of Securing D&O Insurance for SPACs and deSPACs
Compliance and Coronavirus-Michael Beber on M&A, IPOs and SPACs During and After Covid-19
In January 2022, Vice Chancellor Lori Will of the Delaware Court of Chancery issued a groundbreaking opinion in In re MultiPlan Corp. Stockholders Litigation that paved the way for SPAC stockholders to bring direct breach of...more
The electric vehicle company Canoo went public in a de-SPAC transaction in December 2020. After its stock price fell, a stockholder in the SPAC who chose not to redeem his stock sued the SPAC board and its controller for...more
The Delaware Court of Chancery’s recent decision in In re Hennessy Capital Acquisition Corp. IV Stockholder Litigation,1 marks the Chancery Court’s first total dismissal of a complaint alleging breaches of fiduciary duties in...more
A fully informed stockholder vote can help protect a company and its directors from lawsuits challenging a transaction. Under Delaware law, board decisions may enjoy deference under the business judgment rule where...more
The rules, originally proposed in March 2022, realign disclosures, marketing practices and other obligations in de-SPAC transactions more closely with traditional IPOs and add increased risk and uncertainty for market...more
Each month we publish a roundup of the most important SEC enforcement developments for busy in-house lawyers and compliance professionals. This month, we examine: •The SEC’s approval of spot bitcoin ETPs; - •SEC charges...more
This is the fourth in our 2024 Year in Preview series examining important trends in white collar law and investigations in the coming year. We will be posting further installments in the series throughout the next several...more
On January 25, 2024, the SEC announced the settlement of cease-and-desist proceedings against Northern Star Investment Corp. II, a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC). The SEC alleged that the company failed to...more
On January 24, 2024, nearly two years after the SEC initially proposed industry-chilling rules overhauling the treatment of special purpose acquisition companies (“SPACs”) in their IPOs and de-SPAC transactions, the SEC...more
In 2023, the Delaware courts continued to be called upon to elaborate important rules of corporate law. The year’s docket brought further development in a number of areas, including oversight liability, “busted deal”...more
In order to provide an overview for busy in-house counsel and compliance professionals, we summarize below some of the most important SEC enforcement developments from the past month, with links to primary resources. This...more
With SPAC IPOs virtually gone but SPAC mergers (aka de-SPACs) continuing at a steady pace since the beginning of the year, the questions around getting a deal done boil down to the following: How and where can companies get...more
In order to provide an overview for busy in-house counsel and compliance professionals, we summarize below some of the most important SEC enforcement developments from the past month, with links to primary resources....more
In Short - SPAC Deals: Special purpose acquisition companies ("SPACs") boomed in 2020 as a means of taking early-stage private companies public. Following enhanced scrutiny from the Securities and Exchange Commission and...more
Earlier this month, Cornerstone Research and the Stanford Law School Securities Class Action Clearinghouse released a report analyzing 2022 securities class action filings. The report indicates that overall securities class...more
In a case filed simply to determine whether a plaintiff was entitled to attorneys’ fees and expenses for conferring a benefit on a corporation, the Delaware Court of Chancery held that the planned stockholder vote by the...more
During 2022, securities case filings fell for the fourth consecutive year and were down slightly from 2021. The number of announced settlements rose substantially last year, as did total settlement amounts. The 2022...more
On January 4, the Delaware Chancery Court issued a second decision suggesting that SPAC sponsors and directors proceed with care in connection with de-SPAC transactions (and potentially future SPAC formation). As a result of...more
On the heels of record-breaking enforcement in 2022, expect continued aggressive pursuit of Chair Gensler’s priorities in 2023. The SEC will continue to bring its considerable resources to bear to address ESG-related...more
In order to provide an overview for busy in-house counsel and compliance professionals, we summarize below some of the most important and interesting SEC enforcement developments from the past month, with links to primary...more
Coming off record-setting levels in 2021, M&A deal activity cooled in the second half of 2022. A multitude of factors – including soaring inflation, steadily rising interest rates and the higher cost of financing,...more
The Delaware Court of Chancery yesterday denied a motion to dismiss a class action alleging that the directors and sponsor of a special-purpose acquisition company (a “SPAC”) breached their fiduciary duties by disloyally...more
On December 27, 2022, the IRS issued two notices providing key initial guidance for the new excise tax on corporate stock buybacks and the new corporate alternative minimum tax (CAMT). Both the excise tax and the CAMT were...more
To prepare for 2023, reporting companies should be aware of applicable SEC filing deadlines and financial statement “staleness” dates, as well as regulatory reforms that may affect the preparation and contents of disclosures...more
In the first nine months of 2022, plaintiffs filed 157 securities class action lawsuits, according to Cornerstone Research — a figure only slightly lower than the 162 filings in the same period in 2021. Looking behind the...more