Coverage Litigation Leapfrog: Why Venue Matters and How to Avoid Pre-emptive Strike Actions
Law School Toolbox Podcast Episode 267: Listen and Learn -- UCC 2-207 ("The Battle of the Forms")
Podcast: IP Life Sciences Landscape: Aiding Orange and Purple Book Patent Owners in Developing PTAB Survival Skills
Meritas Capability Webinar - Controlling Where to Fight and Who Pays for it?
Last month in Bullock v. Rivian Automotive, California’s Fourth District Court of Appeal became the latest to enforce a federal forum provision (FFP) embedded in a Delaware corporation’s charter and affirmed dismissal of a...more
In a letter ruling, the Delaware Chancery Court held that where neither the target nor the acquiror was a Delaware entity, the transaction documents between the parties could not confer jurisdiction in the Chancery Court...more
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
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
S’holders Rep. Serv. LLC v. DC Capital Partners Fund II, L.P., C.A. No. 2021-0465-KSJM (Del. Ch. Feb. 14, 2022) - While the Court of Chancery has exclusive subject matter jurisdiction over claims and remedies sounding in...more
The Seventh Circuit issued a resounding message: Delaware forum selection clauses in corporate bylaws cannot lawfully prevent a plaintiff from bringing claims under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the Exchange Act or the...more
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
We have discussed in previous alerts a spate of shareholder lawsuits alleging corporate fiduciary breaches and securities law violations tied to the defendant company’s alleged failure to fulfill diversity aspirations. ...more
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
The Delaware Supreme Court recently ruled that corporations may require stockholders to litigate claims under the Securities Act of 1933 (Securities Act) in federal court, holding that such forum provisions in corporate...more
Today, the Supreme Court of Delaware reversed a decision of the Delaware Court of Chancery and affirmatively endorsed the enforceability of federal forum-selection provisions, in a Delaware corporation’s certificate of...more
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
In several blog posts, I have commented on the right to a jury trial under California law. This may seem like an inapposite subject for a blog devoted to corporate and securities law issues. Nonetheless, I have...more
In May, I wrote about Judge Peter H. Kirwan’s ruling in Drulias v. 1st Century Bancshares, Inc., (Cal. Super. Ct. Case No. 16-CV-294673, Nov. 18, 2016). As readers may recall, Judge Kirwan declined to approve a disclosure...more
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
It has become almost axiomatic that when a public company merger is announced, stockholder litigation quickly follows. In recent years, some studies have indicated that more than 90 percent of transactions valued at more than...more
Fee Shifting and Forum Selection Clauses - Much attention has been paid to Delaware legislative developments regarding fee shifting and forum selection clauses. On June 24, 2015, Delaware Governor Jack Markell signed...more
An interesting Delaware Supreme Court decision just before the holidays may have escaped many people’s attention. In United Technologies Corp. v. Treppel, the Court concluded in the context of stockholder inspection rights...more
Previously we have discussed Delaware court decisions upholding forum selection bylaws requiring suits involving a corporation’s internal affairs to be filed in a specified court, such as the Delaware Court of Chancery. Last...more
“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
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
Fending off merger-related shareholder lawsuits keeps getting easier. Just a week ago, the Delaware Chancery Court upheld the enforceability of the bylaw of a Delaware corporation headquartered in North Carolina that selected...more
When almost 98 percent of takeover transactions valued at more than $100 million result in shareholder litigation, and often such transactions are the subject of multiple lawsuits filed in multiple jurisdictions, it is no...more
At first glance, the plaintiff’s position in Bushansky v. Armacost, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 88072 (N.D. Cal. June 25, 2014) seems a bit peculiar. The plaintiff had filed suit challenging Chevron Corporation’s adoption of an...more