A recent Chancery decision recounts the epic tale of a group of business partners who were longtime friends and who later accused each other, after forming a business together, of fraud and breach of fiduciary duty. In Stone & Paper Investors, LLC v. Blanch, C.A. No. 2018-0394-PAF (Del. Ch. July 30, 2021), the court describes
fiduciary-duty
Can Fiduciary of a Debtor Assist a Creditor-Entity that Fiduciary Has Interest In?
By Francis Pileggi on
Posted in Chancery Court Updates
In connection with a recent dispute among LLC members, the Court of Chancery discussed an apparent issue of first impression in Delaware: The rights of the fiduciary of a debtor who seeks to help a creditor-entity that the fiduciary has an interest in. In Skye Mineral Investors, LLC v. DXS Capital (U.S.) Limited, C.A. No.…
Chancery Allows Claims for Breach of Both Fiduciary Duty and Contract Against LLC Manager
By Francis Pileggi on
Posted in Chancery Court Updates
The Delaware Court of Chancery recently explained under what circumstances dual claims will be allowed to proceed for both breach of fiduciary duty and breach of contract in the context of the manager of an LLC allegedly using LLC assets for his personal benefit in a manner not shared by all the other LLC members.…
Self-Sacrifice Not Required of Controlling Stockholder
By Francis Pileggi on
Posted in Chancery Court Updates
A recent Delaware Court of Chancery decision recited important nuances of fiduciary duty applicable to controlling or majority stockholders. In RCS Creditor Trust v. Schorsch, C.A. No. 2017-0178-SG (Del. Ch. March 18, 2021), the court explained that the fiduciary duties of a majority or controlling stockholder do not require self-sacrifice, nor do they mean…
16th Annual Review of Key Delaware Corporate and Commercial Decisions
16th Annual Review of Key Delaware Corporate and Commercial Decisions
By: Francis G.X. Pileggi and Chauna A. Abner
This is the 16th year that Francis Pileggi has published an annual list of key corporate and commercial decisions of the Delaware Supreme Court and the Delaware Court of Chancery. This list does not attempt to include…
Delaware high court agrees proof of director deception is enough to invalidate “coup”
By Francis Pileggi on
Posted in Delaware Supreme Court Updates
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 Supreme Court recently endorsed a ruling that invalidated a fired QLess Inc. CEO’s “boardroom coup” because he violated his fiduciary duty by using affirmative deception to…
A Recent Chancery Decision Addresses Tandem Breach of Contract and Breach of Fiduciary Duty Claims
By Francis Pileggi on
Posted in Chancery Court Updates
A recent Delaware Court of Chancery decision granted a motion to dismiss a fiduciary duty claim that it found to be duplicative of a breach of contract claim. In re: WeWork Litigation, Cons. C.A. No. 2020-0258-AGB (Del. Ch. Dec. 14, 2020). Note that two decisions in this case on two separate motions were issued the
…
Chancery Explains Proper Methods to Expand Board Size and to Fill Board Vacancies
By Francis Pileggi on
Posted in Chancery Court Updates
A recent Delaware Court of Chancery decision provides a primer on the proper way to expand the size of a board of directors and the proper way to fill board vacancies, as well as explaining the difference between a de facto and a de jure director. See Stream TV Networks, Inc. v. SeeCubic, Inc.,
…
When Tandem Claims May Proceed for Breaches of Both Fiduciary Duty and Contract
By Francis Pileggi on
Posted in Selected Articles by Francis
Yours truly and my colleague Chauna Abner have published an article for the recent issue of The Delaware Business Court Insider on the titular topic. The analysis that determines when dual claims for breach of contract and breach of fiduciary duty based on substantially the same operative facts might survive a motion to dismiss, is…
No Cause of Action in Delaware for Conventional Stockholder Oppression
By Francis Pileggi on
Posted in Chancery Court Updates
A recent Order of the Delaware Court of Chancery recited the truism reflected in prior Delaware decisions that, generally speaking, unlike in some other states, Delaware does not have a standalone, conventional cause of action for stockholder oppression, per se, as contrasted with a breach of fiduciary duty claim for not acting in the…