Among the key corporate and commercial Delaware decisions that we have highlighted on these pages during the first five months of 2013, the following decisions either clarified existing Delaware law or announced new law on important substantive or procedural topics. This is a supplement to the annual review of cases we have provided on this blog for the last eight years. Other cases decided so far in 2013 may have been the subject of more commentary elsewhere, but we think that among the 80 or so cases we have reviewed from January through May of 2013, those listed below have the most wide-ranging importance and relevance.

The list was intentionally kept relatively short, which increased the risk of omitting some opinions that also are noteworthy, so we encourage readers to send us suggestions for additions to this list. Hyperlinks below lead to both a synopsis and each slip opinion.

Supreme Court Determines that There is No Fiduciary Duty to Structure Executive Compensation to Take Advantage of Corporate Tax Deduction (Freedman v. Adams). This decision is another example of how difficult it remains to challenge compensation decisions on the basis of Delaware corporate law.

Supreme Court Enforces Duty to Negotiate in Good Faith (SIGA Technologies v. PharmAthene). Most lawyers will be surprised to know that an obligation to negotiate can be enforced in Delaware even when a term sheet is not complete or final.

Supreme Court Upholds Presumption of Good Faith in Agreement to Bar Claims (Norton v. K-Sea Transportation). This is one of many recent examples where an LP agreement waived all duties except the non-waivable implied duty of good faith, but the agreement also created a presumption of good faith that made it almost impossible to challenge wrongdoing. N.B. Waivers will be enforced. Read before signing to know what duties and rights are being waived.

Chancery Clarifies Fiduciary Duty of Disclosure Owed by Directors and Majority Shareholders when Purchasing Shares or Selling Shares to Existing Shareholders (In re: Wayport, Inc. Litigation). This opinion provides a textbook-style explanation of the duty of disclosure in general, as well as in the context of selling and buying shares among existing shareholders.

Supreme Court Establishes New Standard for Trial Courts to Determine Appropriate Penalty when Pretrial Deadlines are Not Met (Christian v. Counseling Resource Associates, Inc.). This is a must-read for lawyers (and their clients) to understand when court approval is needed to extend pre-trial deadlines and the consequences of missing pre-trial filing deadlines.

Chancery Emphasizes Duty of Oversight Owed by Directors Includes Corporate Operations in Foreign Countries (Rich v. Chong and Puda Coal and In re:  China Agritech, Inc. Shareholder Derivative Litigation). This trio of decisions, all involving operations in China of Delaware corporations, should worry directors of companies with far-flung operations in distant countries unless they make visits to those countries or otherwise make themselves sufficiently aware of those operations.

Business Judgement Rule Announced as Standard Applicable to Controlling Shareholder Transactions with Safeguards (In Re MFW Shareholders Litigation). This iconic Chancery decision provides a clear standard to practitioners who formerly had less definitive guidance (and multiple conflicting standards) to advise clients on the standard that would apply in Delaware to controlling shareholder freezeouts.