Albert Carroll on Breach of Contract

Chancery Determines Pharmaceutical Company Complied with Merger Agreement’s Requirement To Use Commercially Reasonable Efforts

Himawan v. Cephalon, Inc., C.A. No. 2018-0075-SG (Del. Ch. Apr. 30, 2024) - Stockholder representatives of an acquired corporation brought claims alleging that defendants had failed to use contractually-required...more

7/10/2024 / Breach of Contract , Merger Agreements , Mergers , Shareholders

Chancery Invokes the Implied Covenant to Invalidate Shareholder Rights Plan

Whitestone REIT Operating Partnership L.P. v. Pillarstone Capital REIT, C.A. No. 2022-0607-LWW (Del. Ch. Jan. 25, 2024) - In Delaware, the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing is inherent in all contracts and...more

4/26/2024 / Breach of Contract , Breach of Duty , Breach of Implied Contract , Covenant of Good Faith and Fair Dealing , Fiduciary Duty , Shareholders

Chancery Decides Scope of Expert’s Authority in Valuation Dispute Resolution Mechanism

Paul v. Rockpoint Group LLC, C.A. 2018-0907-JTL (Del. Ch. Jan. 29, 2024) - This dispute arose from a disagreement over the authority of an appraiser to include legal assertions and extrinsic evidence in his valuation. The...more

3/27/2024 / Breach of Contract , Contract Disputes , Contract Terms , Dispute Resolution

Delaware Supreme Court Affirms Busted-Deal Decision and Attorneys’ Fees for Contingency Fee Based Representation

Energy Transfer LP v. The Williams Companies, Inc., No. 391, 2022 (Del. Oct. 10, 2023) - Busted-deal litigation is commonplace in Delaware and often requires Delaware courts to interpret provisions in merger agreements...more

2/20/2024 / Breach of Contract , Contract Terms , Merger Agreements , Mergers

Chancery Concludes Accountant Provision in Stock Purchase Agreement Calls for Expert Determination Rather than Arbitration

ArchKey Intermediate Holdings Inc. v. Mona, C.A. No. 2021-0383-JTL (Del. Ch. Oct. 3, 2023) - Parties to a stock purchase agreement disputed post-closing price adjustments. The agreement called for an independent accountant...more

2/7/2024 / Breach of Contract , Breach of Duty , Fiduciary Duty , Shareholders , Stock Purchase Agreement

Supreme Court Upholds Contractual Voidness Provision in LLC Agreement

Holifield v. XRI Investment Holdings, LLC, No. 407, 2022 (Del. Sept. 7, 2023) - This decision concerned the disputed transfer of a member's LLC units. Below, the Court of Chancery held that the disputed transfer was...more

1/31/2024 / Board of Directors , Breach of Contract , Breach of Duty , Fiduciary Duty , Shareholders

Chancery Denies Specific Performance in De-SPAC Transaction Based on Difficulty of Enforcement and Plaintiff’s Inequitable Conduct

26 Capital Acquisition Corp. v. Tiger Resort Asia Ltd., CA No. 2023-0128-JTL (Del. Ch. September 7, 2023) - Even where the parties have contractually agreed that specific performance is the preferred remedy for a breach,...more

1/18/2024 / Breach of Contract , Contract Terms , Merger Agreements , Mergers , Shareholders

Chancery Finds Defendants Liable for Fraud Based on the Failure to Disclose Internal Billing Practices

NetApp Inc. v. Cinelli, C.A. No. 2020-1000-LWW (Del. Ch. Aug. 2, 2023) - This decision arose out of the sale of the company Cloud Jumper to NetApp, Inc. The seller’s management had been recording internal software use as...more

1/2/2024 / Breach of Contract , Contract Terms , Fraud , Mergers

Chancery Finds Non-Compete Unenforceable by Subsidiaries Unless Identified in Agreement

Frontline Techs. Parent, LLC v. Murphy, C.A. No. 2023-0546-LWW (Del. Ch. Aug. 23, 2023) - This non-compete decision reminds drafters to pay careful attention to scope and definitions, in particular language covering the...more

1/2/2024 / Breach of Contract , Contract Terms , Former Employee , Non-Compete Agreements , Restrictive Covenants , Subsidiaries

Chancery Finds Member Breached LLC Agreement in Unilaterally Dissolving the Company

VH5 Capital, LLC v. Jeremiah Rabe, C.A. No. 2020-0315-NAC (Del. Ch. June 30, 2023) - The at-issue LLC had two members – the defendant and the plaintiff, both of whom also constituted the company's board. The company never...more

12/11/2023 / Breach of Contract , Dissolution , Limited Liability Company (LLC) , LLC Agreements

Chancery Determines That Former Executives Are Not Entitled to Equity Awards Under Separation Agreement

SeaWorld Entm't, Inc. v. Andrews, C.A. No. 2020-0955-NAC (Del. Ch. May 19, 2023) - SeaWorld Entertainment, Inc. granted unvested equity awards to employees. Pursuant to equity agreements, the awards would vest if the...more

9/12/2023 / Breach of Contract , Motion to Dismiss , Separation Agreement

Entire Fairness Standard Applied to Transaction Benefitting Controllers of Controllers

Tueza v. Lindon, C.A. No. 2022-0130-SG (Del. Ch. Apr. 27, 2023) - Because controlling stockholders of Delaware corporations owe fiduciary duties to both the corporation and to its minority stockholders, the Court of...more

8/24/2023 / Board of Directors , Breach of Contract , Breach of Duty , Fiduciary Duty , Motion to Dismiss

Chancery Relies on Unanimous Dictionary Entries To Confirm Unambiguity of Supply Agreement

Thermo Fisher Scientific PSG Corp. v. Arranta Bio MA, LLC, C.A. No. 2022-0608-NAC (Del. Ch. Apr. 4, 2023) - The plaintiff and the defendant entered into a supply agreement under which the defendant would manufacture...more

8/23/2023 / Breach of Contract , Breach of Duty , Contract Terms , Fiduciary Duty

Chancery Rules That Moving Situs of Trust to Delaware Supports Personal Jurisdiction Under the State’s Long-Arm Statute

Harris v. Harris, C.A. No. 2019-0736-JTL (Del. Ch. Jan. 12, 2023) - Three children filed suit against their mother and her associates, alleging they had seized control of a family-owned corporation and engaged in...more

5/4/2023 / Board of Directors , Breach of Contract , Breach of Duty , Fiduciary Duty , Personal Jurisdiction

Delaware Supreme Court Affirms Delaware Choice-of-Law Ruling In Dismissal of D&O Liability Insurance Coverage Dispute

Stillwater Mining Company v. National Union Fire Insurance Company of Pittsburgh, PA et al., No. 24, 2022 (Del. Jan. 12, 2023) - This decision from Delaware Supreme Court addresses choice-of-law questions for D&O insurance...more

5/4/2023 / Breach of Contract , Breach of Duty , Choice-of-Law , Commercial General Liability Policies , D&O Insurance , Fiduciary Duty , Insurance Litigation

Delaware Corporate and Commercial Case Law Year in Review - February 2023

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

2/13/2023 / Board of Directors , Breach of Contract , Breach of Duty , Corporate Counsel , Derivative Suit , Fiduciary Duty , Motion to Dismiss , Shareholders

Chancery Orders Stay of “Dr. J” Litigation Pending Arbitrator’s Decision on Arbitrability

Erving v. ABG Intermediate Holdings 2, LLC, C.A. No. 2021-0816-NAC (Del. Ch. Nov. 28, 2022) - Basketball legend Julius W. Erving II, also known as “Dr. J”, sold a majority interest in his trademark and other intellectual...more

1/30/2023 / Arbitration , Arbitration Agreements , Breach of Contract , Contract Terms

Superior Court Finds that Non-Recourse Provision Does Not Bar Fraud Claims Against Non-Seller Defendants

Amerimark Interactive LLC v. Amerimark Holdings, C.A. No. N21C-12-175 MMJ CCLD (Del. Super. Nov. 3, 2022) - This decision discusses and applies numerous rules governing fraud claims under Delaware law....more

12/8/2022 / Breach of Contract , Fraud , Fraudulent Inducement , Misrepresentation

Chancery Holds That Requests for Admission Are Subject to Discovery Deadlines

NetApp, Inc. v. Cinelli, Inc., C.A. No. 2020-1000-LWW (Del. Ch. June 3, 2022) - This decision clarifies discovery deadlines under the Court of Chancery rules....more

10/14/2022 / Breach of Contract , Discovery , Privilege Logs

Chancery Denies Bid to Dismiss Derivative Claims Amid Alleged “Gamesmanship” Regarding Composition of LLC’s Board of Managers

Schoenmann v. Irvin, C.A. 2021-0326-SG (Del. Ch. Jun. 2, 2022) - After the plaintiff filed his direct and derivative claims in April 2021, the defendants – the company and its controller – circulated in June 2021 a written...more

10/14/2022 / Breach of Contract , Breach of Duty , Demand Futility , Derivative Suit , Fiduciary Duty

Superior Court Classifies Cryptocurrency as a Security and Calculates Contract Damages Based on Cryptocurrency Valuation

Diamond Fortress Techs., Inc. v. Everid, Inc., C.A. No. N21C-05-048 PRW CCLD (Del. Super. Ct. Apr. 14, 2022) - Plaintiff Diamond Fortress contracted with the defendant company to provide its software to develop a trading...more

10/4/2022 / Blockchain , Breach of Contract , Calculation of Damages , Cryptocurrency , Damages , Popular

Delaware Supreme Court Interprets Deadline for Bringing Indemnification Claims

North American Leasing, Inc. v. NASDI Holdings, LLC, No. 192, 2020 (Del. Apr. 11, 2022) - Defendants acquired construction entities from plaintiffs and agreed to indemnify plaintiffs for any losses arising from performance...more

10/4/2022 / Breach of Contract , Contract Terms , DE Supreme Court , Indemnification Clauses

Chancery Resolves Section 225 Dispute and Declines to Invalidate Written Consents

Zhou v. Deng, C.A. No. 2021-0026-JRS (Del. Ch. Apr. 6, 2022) - When deciding a summary proceeding regarding a disputed corporate office under Section 225 of the DGCL, the Court of Chancery may consider whether an election,...more

8/8/2022 / Board of Directors , Breach of Contract , Breach of Duty , Fiduciary Duty , Motion to Dismiss , Shareholders

Chancery Finds General Partner Breached Partnership Agreement in Exercising Call Right, and Awards Limited Partners Nearly $700...

Bandera Master Fund LP v. Boardwalk Pipeline Partners, LP, C.A. No. 2018-0372-JTL (Del. Ch. Nov. 12, 2021) - If a partnership agreement requires an opinion of counsel as a condition precedent, such opinion must be rendered...more

2/18/2022 / Breach of Contract , Breach of Duty , Fiduciary Duty , Partnership Agreements , Partnerships

Chancery Dismisses Time-Barred Complaint Against Zillow

Chertok v. Zillow, Inc., C.A. No. 2019-0849-LWW (Del. Ch. Oct. 18, 2021) - Plaintiffs, a former co-founder and director of NMD Interactive (“Chertok”) and an LLC that he managed, brought a breach of contract action against...more

1/25/2022 / Board of Directors , Breach of Contract , Breach of Duty , Fiduciary Duty , Mergers , Statute of Limitations

Albert Carroll

Morris James LLP

Readers' Choice Awards

Popular Topics by This Author

Latest Posts › Breach of Contract