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Breach of Duty Shareholder Litigation Derivative Suit

Allen Matkins

When Dismissing A Case Violates Due Process

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When a shareholder sues derivatively, the shareholder is seeking relief not for itself, but for the corporation.  Therefore, it should be expected that the shareholder is not free to compromise or dismiss the suit absent...more

Morris James LLP

Court of Chancery Rejects ‘Caremark’ Liability for Imperfect Compliance With Legal Obligations

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Delaware corporations are not permitted to pursue profits by violating the law. Under Caremark and its progeny, directors’ fiduciary duties include the good faith obligation to oversee and monitor the corporation’s compliance...more

Allen Matkins

Just What Are The Duties Of A Controlling Shareholder And How Should Claims Of Breach Be Brought?

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In a recent post, Professor Stephen Bainbridge discusses the question of when a controlling shareholder owes fiduciary duties to minority shareholders.  Knowing when controlling shareholder owes fiduciary duties is one thing,...more

Hogan Lovells

In re Cognizant Technology: Third Circuit adopts de novo review for failure to plead demand futility

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In re Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation Derivative Litigation, the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, sitting en banc, overruled its prior decision in Blasband v. Rales that applied an...more

Allen Matkins

Is Your Directors And Officers Liability Coverage Illusory?

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Many corporations pay significant amounts for directors and officers liability policies.  Commonly referred to as D&O policies, these policies usually involve three sides.  Directors and officers are likely to have the most...more

Morris James LLP

Chancery Holds Plaintiff Fails to Meet Rule 23.1 Pleading Standard, Dismisses Action Arising From T-Mobile Data Hack

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Harper v. Sievert, C.A. No. 2022-0819-SG (Del. Ch. May 31, 2024). A stockholder plaintiff brought derivative claims alleging that current and former directors of T-Mobile US, Inc. were liable for aggregating customers’...more

Morris James LLP

Delaware Supreme Court Reverses MFW Dismissal Due to Inadequate Disclosures Regarding Special Committee’s Advisors’ Material...

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City of Sarasota Firefighters’ Pension Fund v. Inovalon Holdings Inc., No. 305, 2023 (Del. May 1, 2024). The Delaware Supreme Court’s decision in Khan v. M & F Worldwide Corp. (“MFW”) established a cleansing process for a...more

Bennett Jones LLP

Delaware Court Affirms High Threshold for Breach of Directors' Caremark Duties

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In a recent case, Bricklayers Pension Fund of Western Pennsylvania (derivatively on behalf of Centene Corporation) v Brinkley (Centene), Delaware's Court of Chancery dismissed “Caremark duty claims”—named after the 1996 case...more

Woodruff Sawyer

Corporate Barbarians at the Gates: The Attack on Delaware

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All empires eventually decline. For decades, Delaware has held the crown as the premier state of incorporation for domestic companies (and many foreign companies seeking a foothold in the United States capital markets). But...more

Morris James LLP

Court of Chancery Grants Special Litigation Committee’s Dismissal of 'Carvana' Derivative Action

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Boards of Delaware corporations control the company’s assets, which includes by default derivative claims for breach of fiduciary duty against the company’s directors and officers. When derivative claims survive dismissal...more

Morris James LLP

Chancery Dismisses Derivative Action Based on Plaintiff’s Failure to Allege Particularized Facts Demonstrating Demand Futility

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The power to bring a claim for breach of duty causing injury to a Delaware corporation resides with the board of directors. It is part of their duty under Section 141(a) of the Delaware General Corporation Law to manage the...more

Morris James LLP

Chancery Denies Attorneys’ Fees for Appointment of New Directors Following Assertion of Derivative Claims

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In re Oracle Corp. Deriv. Litig., Consol. C.A. No. 2017-0337-SG (Del. Ch. Feb. 7, 2024) - Under the mootness rule, a stockholder plaintiff can be awarded attorneys’ fees when the plaintiff’s litigation efforts result in...more

Morris James LLP

Chancery Invalidates Elon Musk’s $55.8 Billion Pay Package

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Tornetta v. Musk, et al., C.A. 2018-0408-KSJM (Del. Ch. Jan. 30, 2024) - Stockholders of Tesla, Inc. brought a derivative action against Elon Musk and six individual Tesla directors, alleging that the directors breached...more

Morris James LLP

Chancery Upholds Challenge to TripAdvisor’s Conversion from a Delaware Corporation into a Nevada Entity

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Palkon v. Maffei, C.A. 2023-0449-JTL (Del. Ch. Feb. 20, 2024) - This decision arose out of TripAdivor’s conversion from a Delaware corporation into a Nevada corporation. The company’s CEO and Chair had voting control and...more

Morris James LLP

Chancery Addresses Pleading-Stage Arguments for Dismissal in LLC Dispute

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Principal Growth Strategies LLC v. AGH Parent LLC, C.A. 2019-0431-JTL (Del. Ch. January 25, 2023) - This decision provides helpful guidance to practitioners to address pleading-stage arguments for dismissal. The plaintiff...more

A&O Shearman

Delaware Court Of Chancery Dismisses Derivative Claim For Breach Of Duty Of Oversight, Finding Failure To Establish Demand...

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On February 19, 2024, Vice Chancellor Lori Will of the Delaware Court of Chancery dismissed a derivative breach of fiduciary duty action against nominal defendant Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (the “Company”) and its board...more

Morris James LLP

Chancery Dismisses Double-Derivative Claims for Failure To Plead Demand Futility

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City of Hialeah Emps. Ret. Sys. v. Insight Venture Partners, C.A. No. 2022-0846-MTZ (Del. Ch. Dec. 28, 2023) - A venture capital fund invested in two different entities. One of the entities then acquired the other. In the...more

Morris James LLP

Chancery Declines to Shift Costs to Derivative Plaintiffs

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In re Oracle Corp. Deriv. Litig., C.A. No. 2017-0337-SG (Del. Ch. Dec. 28, 2023) - By rule, the prevailing party in Court of Chancery litigation is entitled to shift costs to the losing party, subject to the Court’s...more

Bennett Jones LLP

Delaware Courts Confirm High Standard for Breach of Oversight Duty Applies Equally to Officers and Directors

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In the United States, corporate directors and, as confirmed by the Delaware Court in McDonald’s Corp. Stockholder Derivative Litigation (McDonald), corporate officers owe, as a subset of their duty of loyalty, a duty to...more

Morris James LLP

Applying New Rule 23.1, Chancery Establishes Leadership Structure in Fox Derivative Litigation

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In re Fox Corp. Deriv. Litig., C.A. 2023-0418-JTL (Del. Ch. Dec. 29, 2023). The newly amended Court of Chancery Rule 23.1 identifies factors for a court to consider when resolving a litigation leadership dispute. In this...more

Morris James LLP

2023 Delaware Corporate and Commercial Case Law Year in Review

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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

Morris James LLP

Chancery Finds That Books and Records Incorporated by Reference in Complaint Demonstrate the Lack of a Valid Caremark Claim

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Joel Newman v. KKR Phorm Investors, L.P., et al. C.A. No. 2022-0310-NAC (Del. Ch. Aug. 31, 2023). At the motion to dismiss stage, Delaware courts will consider the facts alleged in the complaint as well as the documents...more

Hogan Lovells

Newman v. KKR: Suit dismissed by Delaware Chancery Court for failure to plead demand futility

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In Newman v. KKR, the Delaware Court of Chancery dismissed a shareholder suit against Transphorm, Inc.’s Board and KKR, the largest shareholder, for failure to plead demand futility. The plaintiff alleged that the Board...more

Morris James LLP

Chancery Approves Reduced Fee Award for Derivative Settlement Based on Therapeutic Benefits

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Sciabacucchi v. Howley, C.A. No. 2021-0938-LWW (Del. Ch. July 3, 2023) - A stockholder filed a derivative action alleging breach of fiduciary duty and unjust enrichment in connection with a board compensation committee’s...more

Hogan Lovells

Q2 2023 Quarterly Corporate / M&A decisions updates

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This quarter we are covering some key court decisions regarding securities and corporate governance issues. The U.S. Supreme Court reaffirmed a majority of lower court decisions to require traceability in defining the term...more

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