There are relatively few Chancery decisions on Rule 11 compared with more common corporate and commercial litigation issues that are the subject of Chancery opinions, and a recent letter decision provides insights into why there are not more rulings on Rule 11. In POSCO Energy Co., Ltd. v. FuelCell Energy, Inc., Civil Action No.
Court of Chancery
Chancery Clarifies “Summary” v. “Expedited” Proceedings
A recent letter ruling from the Court of Chancery clarified the procedural distinction between a statutory proceeding considered “summary” in nature, and a case that may involve exigent circumstances for which a Motion to Expedite may be warranted. In PL Wardman Member, LLC v. JBGS/Company Manager, L.L.C., No. 2020-0754-JRS (Del. Ch. Sept. 21, 2020),…
Chancery says board faction access to rivals’ control dispute discovery ‘depends’ on adversity and standing
This post was prepared by Frank Reynolds, who has been following Delaware corporate law, and writing about it for various legal publications, for over 30 years.
A discovery ruling by the Delaware Court of Chancery in a contest between two board factions for control of Adkins Energy LLC allowed plaintiff Pearl City Elevator, Inc. access…
Chancery Declines to Order Reserve for Fraud Claims Against Dissolving Corporation Under DGCL Section 280
There remains a relative paucity of opinions addressing the nuances of the dissolution statute under DGCL Section 280, compared to the Delaware decisions addressing other sections of the DGCL, so we refer to a recent Court of Chancery decision that denies a Motion for Reargument under Rule 59(f) of a ruling that rejected a request…
Must-Read Chancery Decision for Buyers of Businesses Whose Value Depends on Retaining Customer Relationships
A recent Delaware Court of Chancery decision addressed the issue of whether a seller was liable for not disclosing the notification it received prior to closing that one or more key customers were terminating their relationship with the seller’s business. Swipe Acquisition Corporation v. Krauss, C.A. No. 2019-0509-PAF (Del. Ch. Aug. 25, 2020). This…
Video Interview of Yours Truly on 15 Years of Blogging About Delaware Corporate Law
This past week I was the subject of an online video interview that was livestreamed on Facebook. LexBlog, the company that provides the “backroom” software support to host this blog, conducted the interview and we talked about the genesis of this blog and why I have continued to publish this blog over the last…
Chancery explains how AmerisourceBergen plaintiffs’ Caremark claim passed pre-suit demand test
This post was prepared by Frank Reynolds, who has been following Delaware corporate law, and writing about it for various legal publications, for over 30 years.
The Delaware Court of Chancery recently decided AmerisourceBergen Corporation shareholders’ breach-of-duty suit was one of the few Caremark claims to pass Delaware’s pre-suit demand test because it may prove…
Chancery Addresses Third-Party Beneficiary Issues
A recent Court of Chancery letter ruling provides useful definitions and related statements of Delaware contract law in connection with issues that arose over an asset purchase agreement. In CHS/Community Health Systems, Inc. v. Steward Health Care System LLC, C.A. No. 2019-0165-JRS (Del. Ch. Aug. 21, 2020), the following statements of law provided by the…
Statute of Limitations for Breach of Contract v. Wage Claims
The Delaware Statute of Limitations for contract claims v. claims for wages was compared and contrasted in Weik, Nitsche & Dougherty, LLC v. Pratcher, C.A. No. 2018-0803-MTZ (Del. Ch. Aug. 26, 2020). In sum:
- Delaware has a three-year statute of limitations for most contract claims pursuant to 10 Del. C. section 8106
- For wage claims,
…
Chancery Enforces Forum Selection Clause in Charter for Inspection Demand
A recent Court of Chancery decision is almost as noteworthy for what it decided as for what was not decided. In JUUL Labs, Inc. v. Grove, C.A. No. 2020-0005-JTL (Del. Ch. Aug. 13, 2020), Delaware’s court of equity enforced an exclusive forum selection clause in a company charter, based at least in part on the…