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Corporate Governance Forum Selection Shareholder Litigation

Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer

California Supreme Court Confirms General Enforceability of Delaware Court of Chancery Forum Selection Clauses

Forum selection clauses have long been a feature of commercial contracting. Since then-Chancellor Strine’s decision in Boilermakers Local 154 Ret. Fund v. Chevron Corp., Delaware corporations have routinely included such...more

Snell & Wilmer

California Supreme Court Resolves Long-Running Dispute Over Delaware Forum Selection Clauses

Snell & Wilmer on

In a closely watched decision issued on July 21, 2025, the California Supreme Court, in EpicentRx, Inc. v. Superior Court, held that a forum selection clause requiring shareholder lawsuits to be brought in the Delaware Court...more

Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton LLP

California Supreme Court Holds That Lack of Jury Trial Right Is Insufficient to Reject Enforcement of Forum Selection Clause

In EpicentRx, Inc. v. Superior Court, Case No. S282521, 2025 WL 2027272 (Cal. July 21, 2025), the California Supreme Court held that forum selection clauses may be enforced against California plaintiffs even when the selected...more

Kennedys

Delaware Court of Chancery forum selection clause found enforceable by California Supreme Court, despite depriving plaintiff the...

Kennedys on

Delaware corporations headquartered in California can now successfully move to dismiss investor suits filed in California when the corporations’ governing documents contain forum selection clauses mandating the Delaware Court...more

Goodwin

California Supreme Court Delivers Major Win for Delaware Forum-Selection Clauses

Goodwin on

On July 21, 2025, the California Supreme Court issued a decision in EpicentRx, Inc. v. Superior Court of San Diego County, which held that an exclusive forum-selection clause designating a forum where a civil jury trial would...more

Allen Matkins

Is Delaware Forum Selection Bylaw Binding On Shareholder Who Filed Suit When The Corporation Was Incorporated In California?

Allen Matkins on

In Drulias v. 1st Century Bancshares, Inc. 30 Cal. App. 5th 696 (2018), the plaintiff was a shareholder in a Delaware corporation whose board of directors approved a merger agreement and at the same time adopted a forum...more

Allen Matkins

Don't Say You Weren't Warned! Court Of Appeal Declines To Enforce Delaware Forum Selection Clause In Delaware Corporation's...

Allen Matkins on

Ten years ago, I questioned in this space whether a Delaware forum selection charter provision would survive constitutional scrutiny if it involved a de facto waiver of a jury trial...more

Goodwin

Supreme Court Delivers Key Defense Victory by Limiting Section 11 Claims in Direct Listings - and Again Calling for a Rigid...

Goodwin on

On June 1, 2023, the United States Supreme Court issued a unanimous opinion that makes it more difficult for shareholders to bring Section 11 claims against companies that go public via direct listings. The case involved a...more

Hogan Lovells

Lee v. Fisher: Circuit split on enforceability of forum-selection clauses - Corporate / M&A Decisions update series

Hogan Lovells on

In Lee v. Fisher, 34 F.4th 777 (9th Cir. 2022), the Ninth Circuit affirmed the dismissal of a shareholder derivative suit against The Gap Inc. (Gap), alleging violations of Section 14(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of...more

Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP

Seventh and Ninth Circuits Split Over the Scope of Exclusive Forum Provisions

Earlier this year the United States Courts of Appeals for the Seventh and Ninth Circuits each addressed the question of whether an exclusive forum provision adopted by a Delaware company and requiring derivative litigation...more

Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer

Seventh Circuit Denies the Enforceability of Boeing’s Forum-Selection Bylaw, Reviving Derivative Suit

As discussed in a previous client alert, The Boeing Company (Boeing) has faced shareholder litigation arising from the fatal crashes of two 737 MAX airplanes. In one such derivative suit filed under Section 14(a) of the...more

Jones Day

Recent Developments in Shareholder Derivative Litigation Concerning Diversity in Corporate Leadership

Jones Day on

The Situation: A number of shareholder derivative lawsuits in federal court have been filed seeking to hold directors and officers of major companies accountable for alleged failures to uphold their companies' stated...more

Proskauer - Corporate Defense and Disputes

All-Seeing Bylaws Help Block Diversity Suit

The rash of shareholder derivative actions alleging violations of fiduciary duties tied to companies’ diversity measures are continuing to take a beating in the Northern District of California. We previously posted about the...more

Proskauer - Corporate Defense and Disputes

Another Diversity Suit Tossed on Forum Selection Grounds

This week, another shareholder derivative suit was dismissed based on a forum selection clause contained in the company’s bylaws. In November 2020, a shareholder filed a derivative action alleging that directors and officers...more

BCLP

Federal Forum Provisions for Securities Act Claims Upheld by Delaware Supreme Court

BCLP on

In the last two years, plaintiffs’ lawyers have increasingly been bringing lawsuits under the Securities Act of 1933 (“Securities Act”), such as claims relating to public offerings, in state rather than federal court. ...more

Mintz - Securities Litigation Viewpoints

Delaware Chancery Court Holds Corporations Cannot Enact Federal Forum Provisions To Bypass Cyan and Preclude State Courts from...

In 2017, courts across this country were split on whether plaintiffs could assert a class action alleging claims under the Securities Act of 1933 (which provides a private right of action against issuers and others for...more

Proskauer Rose LLP

Delaware Supreme Court Confirms Preclusive Effect of Dismissal of Derivative Actions Based on Lack of Demand Futility

Proskauer Rose LLP on

The Delaware Supreme Court held yesterday that the dismissal of a shareholder derivative action for lack of demand futility can preclude other derivative actions as long as the plaintiff in the dismissed case adequately...more

Proskauer - Corporate Defense and Disputes

Southern District of Florida Case Challenging Bylaw Requiring Minimum Stake to Sue Dismissed

As we have previously discussed, there has been a growing trend of corporations’ adopting various types of bylaws to define the bounds of shareholder litigation. These include forum-selection bylaws and fee-shifting bylaws...more

Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP

Insights: The Delaware Edition - October 2015

We are pleased to share with you the inaugural issue of Insights: The Delaware Edition, a periodic publication addressing significant Delaware deal litigation and corporation law developments. In This Issue: - Q&A...more

McCarter & English, LLP

New Delaware Law Invalidates “Fee-shifting” and Validates "Forum-selection" Provisions

Prohibition on Fee-Shifting Provisions - The legislation signed into law last week responds to the Delaware Supreme Court’s decision in ATP Tour, Inc. v. Deutscher Tennis Bund, 91 A.3d 554 (Del. 2014) in which the Court...more

Proskauer - Corporate Defense and Disputes

Delaware Governor Signs Bill Prohibiting Bylaws on Fee-Shifting

Last week, Delaware Governor Jack Markell signed Senate Bill 75, which amends the Delaware General Corporation Law to prohibit Delaware stock corporations from adopting bylaws that force shareholders to pay legal fees if they...more

Proskauer - Corporate Defense and Disputes

Delaware House Passes Bill Prohibiting Bylaws on Fee-Shifting

On June 11th, the Delaware House of Representatives unanimously passed a bill prohibiting publicly traded corporations from adopting bylaws that force shareholders to pay legal fees if they do not prevail in lawsuits...more

Morrison & Foerster LLP

Recent Decisions Confirm That Forum Selection Bylaws Are Best Considered on a Clear Day - But May Be Beneficial Later as Well

“Exclusive forum” bylaws and charter provisions are a powerful tool for managing the risk of parallel corporate governance litigation against a company and its directors in multiple forums, allowing stockholders to bring such...more

Cohen & Gresser LLP

Forum Selection Bylaws Gain Ground

Cohen & Gresser LLP on

As we previously discussed (Should Your Board Adopt an Exclusive Forum Bylaw?, July 2013; The Future of Exclusive Forum Bylaws, November 2013), forum selection bylaws (also sometimes called exclusive forum bylaws) have become...more

Morrison & Foerster LLP

Forum Selection Bylaws Are Best Considered On A Clear Day

“Exclusive forum” bylaws and charter provisions are a powerful tool for managing the risk of parallel corporate governance litigation against a company and its directors in multiple forums, allowing stockholders to bring such...more

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