Expert or Arbitrator? — PE Pathways Podcast
Earn-Out Arrangements – Interview with David Lagasse, Member, Mintz Levin
Earnouts are a form of contingent consideration that the buyer of a business pays to the seller in the period following the acquisition, based on the business achieving various financial metrics related to its performance...more
When selling a private company, Sellers understandably focus on providing bidders with a comprehensive data room packed with detailed documents and information about every aspect of their business. They expect bidders to pore...more
With an observable increase in the use of earnout and contingent consideration structures in M&A, it is timely to consider the related tax complexity. In brief Our recent Private M&A Report highlights a rise in the use of...more
A recent Delaware Chancery Court opinion offers a significant example of how courts may apply complex probability analysis to determine the amount of damages in an earnout dispute. The case arose from Alexion Pharmaceuticals,...more
Times of economic volatility often increase disparities between a seller’s valuation and the buyer’s valuation of the same company. Earn-out provisions are one tool frequently used to address such disparities. An earn-out...more
In this episode of PE Pathways, Partners Nick Stawasz and Dan Boland discuss the distinctions between engaging an expert or an arbitrator for resolving post-closing purchase price and earnout disputes in M&A deals. The...more
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
The owner of an Accounting business in California is in advanced discussions to sell her business to a New Jersey-based buyer. Many terms are settled… but the parties have acknowledged that the business is ‘dependent on...more
The Ontario Superior Court of Justice recently released its decision in Project Freeway Inc. v ABC Technologies Inc. (2025 ONSC 1048), addressing whether certain post-closing transactions triggered the acceleration of an...more
Artificial intelligence is revolutionizing life science R&D (particularly in the realm of drug discovery) and challenging the traditional "human inventorship" requirement for U.S. patents. Recent guidance from the USPTO...more
In 2024, Delaware courts issued multiple instructive decisions on earnout provisions in life sciences M&A transactions. ...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
The High Court has ruled that earn-out calculations, emailed by the buyer to the sellers in relation to a share sale, were not validly communicated. Earnout calculations and notice provisions - Under an earnout provision...more
Periodically, particularly during economic downturns or times of market uncertainty, the private M&A market experiences a significant increase in the use of earnouts. As was the case following the Great Recession and the...more
Our M&A team is honored to have represented clients in some of the most compelling transactions in 2024, from advising the iconic rock band KISS and its co-founders Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley in the sale of all assets...more
Orrick’s Tech Exit Series suggests tips for tech companies looking toward an exit. Our market-leading London M&A and Private Equity team writes instalments in the series with contributions from specialists across our broader...more
In Shareholder Representative Services LLC v. Alexion Pharmaceuticals, Inc., the Delaware Court of Chancery addressed an earnout dispute, holding that a buyer violated its contract with the seller by failing to use...more
The Delaware Court of Chancery has weighed in on a number of recent cases interpreting earnout provisions in transactional agreements. The Court has demonstrated a reluctance to rule against seller-plaintiffs during the...more
In two significant recent opinions, the Delaware Chancery Court ruled against the buyers of life sciences companies, holding that they failed to apply commercially reasonable efforts to achieve earnout milestones. In Fortis...more
In Trifecta Multimedia Holdings v. WCG Clinical Services, the Delaware Court of Chancery analyzed claims related to an M&A transaction involving an earn-out component. Earn-outs are a common feature of M&A transactions and...more
In recent months, the Delaware Court of Chancery has decided four significant cases regarding merger agreement earnout provisions. Most notably, in one of the largest judgments ever awarded by the Court, it found Johnson &...more
In the October edition of our Public Company Watch, we cover key issues impacting public companies, including a recent SEC enforcement sweep, key takeaways stemming from the SEC’s recent adoption of EDGAR Next, two recent...more
Earnout provisions are common in life sciences and healthtech mergers and acquisitions, particularly when an acquired company may add significant value after closing. This can occur if the acquired business has a product in...more
The mergers and acquisitions (M&A) landscape in the sports industry has remained notably active and attractive to investors, driven by continuous digital transformation and global franchise investments. Since 1985, the sports...more
Appellate court ruling widens scope of NY fee-splitting law to include earnouts - The decision overturned a lower court ruling relating to the sale of part of a dental practice in 2015. The plaintiff agreed to sell...more