Bar Exam Toolbox Podcast Episode 167: Listen and Learn -- Direct and Derivative Actions (Corporations)
Board Diversity Podcast
Securities Litigation and Disclosure Issues
Podcast: CFTC Issues LIBOR Transition Relief for Swaps
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
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
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
Last year, Vice Chancellor J. Travis Laster famously held that officers could be subject to liability under the Caremark doctrine. In re McDonald’s Corp., 289 A.3d 343 (Del. Ch. Jan. 26, 2023). The Caremark doctrine...more
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
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
Sections 706 (d) and 716 (c) of the Business Corporation Law (the “BCL”) both contain a “for cause” standard for judicial removal of corporate directors and officers. Complaints with claims for judicial corporate director and...more
Claims against corporate officers and directors most commonly are derivative claims brought on behalf of a corporation or LLC in which the company is a nominal plaintiff. These claims allege that the defendants have breached...more
Traditionally deployed to protect a corporation from its board’s imprudent investment or financial decision-making, in recent years shareholders have taken to bringing derivative actions on a corporation’s behalf for its...more
The decision articulates the standard for plaintiffs asserting derivative claims based on an alleged failure of oversight by directors and officers of California companies. Nearly three decades ago in the seminal case In...more
Mitigating climate change impacts is becoming a critical business priority, and the pressure to achieve corporate sustainability objectives is mounting as investment-focused regulations continue to drive companies toward...more
The California Supreme Court sets new precedent that unlike for-profit corporations, a former non-profit director may maintain a derivative lawsuit. The decision increases the likelihood that decisions of boards of...more
Effective August 1, 2022, Section 102(b)(7) of the Delaware General Corporation Law (DGCL) was amended to permit a Delaware corporation to include in its charter a provision eliminating or limiting the personal liability of...more
A claim for breach of the duty of oversight is known as a Caremark claim, after the landmark Delaware Court of Chancery decision in In re Caremark International Inc. Derivative Litigation (1996). Since then, Delaware courts...more
The opioid crisis has garnered nationwide attention for decades and has resulted in thousands of lawsuits, subjecting pharmaceutical distributors to billions of dollars in damages. AmerisourceBergen (“Amerisource”) — one of...more
In a significant and far-reaching development in Delaware corporate law, the Delaware Court of Chancery recently held in In re McDonald’s Corporation Stockholder Derivative Litigation, C.A. No. 2021-0324-JTL (Del. Ch. Jan....more
In former Chancellor Allen’s hallmark decision in In re Caremark International, Inc. Derivative Litigation, the Delaware Court of Chancery held that directors of a corporation owe stockholders the fiduciary duty of oversight....more
The Delaware Court of Chancery has recently held in In re McDonald’s Corporation Stockholder Derivative Litigation that shareholders can pursue a derivative claim for breach of the fiduciary duty of oversight against...more
For companies incorporated in Delaware (and beyond), it may be time to reexamine a number of issues impacting senior leadership from a variety of perspectives, including corporate governance, indemnification provisions,...more
According to a recent decision handed down by the Delaware courts, corporate officers must now contend with a new avenue of liability: the duty of oversight. Previously, only a company’s board could face personal liability...more
Human Resources Executives and Chief Compliance Officers now face the potential for increased personal liability following a first-of-its-kind decision from a Delaware court, which established the fiduciary duty of oversight...more
In an opinion entered in the case on January 3, 2023, U.S. District Judge Raag Singhal of the Southern District of Florida dismissed with prejudice a putative securities class action complaint against Citrix Systems, Inc....more
As SPAC litigation continues to proliferate, it is more important than ever that officers and directors of companies undertaking a de-SPAC transaction be mindful of litigation risks and adopt strategies for managing them....more
On May 25, 2022, Vice Chancellor Sam Glasscock III of the Delaware Court of Chancery denied a motion to dismiss a stockholder derivative claim against a director of Fat Brands Inc. (the “Corporation”) for alleged breach of...more
In a derivative action In re Boeing Company Derivative Litigation, Boeing’s stockholders obtained approval from the Delaware Court of Chancery for a landmark US$237.5 million settlement of derivative claims targeting the...more