Bankruptcy attorney, scholar, friend and all-around good person, Steve Jakubowski, posts here on his Bankruptcy Litigation Blog, about a follow-up to the recent Delaware Supreme Court’s affirmance (see post here), of the Chancery Court’s Trenwick decision (see post here), and based on other court decisions in other jurisdictions as well as several
August 2007
Attorney’s Fees of $1,000 per hour
By Francis Pileggi on
Posted in Commentary
Here is an article in today’s Wall Street Journal about attorneys who now charge $1,000 per hour –or more.
The Mystery of Delaware
By Francis Pileggi on
Posted in Commentary
Prof. Christine Hurt announces here at the Conglomerate blog an upcoming presentation in October at her University of Illinois College of Law, entitled: "The Mystery of Delaware Law’s Success", and sponsored by the Illinois Program in Business Law and Policy, of which Prof. Hurt is Director.
Among the presenters are our very own Chancery William Chandler, III…
Trustee and Beneficiary Dispute Trust Terms
By Francis Pileggi on
Posted in Court of Chancery Updates
Merrill Lynch F.S.B. v. Campbell, 2007 WL 2069867 (Del. Ch., July 2007), read opinion here. This case involved a trustee who brought a declaratory judgment action seeking judicial confirmation of its conduct in connection with its administration of a trust. The beneficiary – settlor counterclaimed alleging that the trustee used fraud and misrepresentation to induce her to …
Common Interest Doctrine–An Exception/Expansion of the Attorney/Client Privilege
By Francis Pileggi on
Posted in Other Court Decisions
U.S. v. BDO Seidman, LLP, (7th Cir., July 2007), read opinion here.
This case addresses the “common interest doctrine” which is often confused with the attorney/client privilege, but is an essential concept to grasp especially for multi-party litigation. It is, in effect, an exception to the rule that no attorney/client privilege attaches to communications between …
Supreme Court Affirms Chancery Decision Rejecting Claims for Deepening Insolvency
By Francis Pileggi on
Posted in Delaware Supreme Court Updates
The Delaware Supreme Court in a two-page Order issued on Aug. 14, 2007, (read here), affirmed the Chancery Court’s Trenwick decision of last year (summarized here and here on this blog), thus sounding the death knell in Delaware for the claim of "deepening insolvency" and casting aspersions on the concept of "the zone…
Chancery Gives Second Chance to Spring-loading Claim
By Francis Pileggi on
Posted in Court of Chancery Updates
In the case of In Re Tyson Foods, Inc. Consolidated Shareholder Litig., (Del. Ch., August 15, 2007), read opinion here, the Chancery Court once again allowed the claim in this case involving spring-loading of stock options to proceed. (Hat Tip: Kurt Heyman). This decision denied a Motion for Judgment on the Pleadings under…
Good Faith and Oversight Converge
By Francis Pileggi on
Posted in Commentary
Professor Bainbridge announces his latest article, which is must reading for those interested in Delaware corporate law. The title of the law review article available on SSRN is : The Convergence of Good Faith and Oversight.
Here is the abstract:
In Stone v. Ritter, 911 A.2d 362 (Del. 2006), two important strands of Delaware corporate law
…
Lord Black’s Delaware Hollinger Cases
By Francis Pileggi on
Posted in Commentary
Much has been written in the popular and trade press about the recent conviction in Chicago of Lord Black in connection with his Hollinger entities. Here is a report of the conviction by The Wall Street Journal Law Blog. Though not mentioned in most of the recent reports about the Chicago trial, Lord Black…
Justice Prevails?
By Francis Pileggi on
Posted in Other Court Decisions
I am on vacation the week of August 13, so I will use some posts which I have compiled and that may not be as time-sensitive–as I am fairly up to date with my summaries of key opinions issued by the Delaware Chancery Court and Delaware Supreme Court on corporate and commercial law topics of interest to…