In Gradient OC Master Ltd. v. NBC Universal, Inc., 2007 WL 2058733 (Del. Ch., July 12, 2007), read opinion here, the Delaware Chancery Court denied injunctive relief in connection with a somewhat involved exchange transaction in which it was alleged that the offer to shareholders was coercive and misleading, in addition to unfairly extracting value from the minority. The court found that the three prerequisites for granting a preliminary injunction were not met. The court provides many factual and legal details to support its decision but in this short post I will note the conclusion: the court did not find a likelihood of success on the merits nor did it find irreparable harm. Neither party presented persuasive  arguments on the balancing of equities.

This is an example of how quickly the Chancery Court can act in appropriate circumstances. The complaint was filed on June 20. Expedited discovery was ordered and a hearing was held on July 6 to consider a request for a preliminary injunction. There was a deadline of July 11 if the challenged transaction was to be stopped, and the court met that deadline by issuing an oral opinion by that date, and following it with the detailed and comprehensive 23-page opinion linked above on July 12.