Delaware

November 28, 2023
Proterra Gets OK For $210M Battery Biz Sale To Volvo

A Delaware bankruptcy judge Tuesday gave electric-bus maker Proterra Inc. the go-ahead to sell its battery business to Volvo for $210 million after being told the bid was the best offer on the table.
November 28, 2023
Law Firm Leaders Cautiously Optimistic Heading Into 2024

Major U.S. law firms are steadfast in their commitment to the pursuit of further growth despite ongoing economic uncertainty. Here’s what the leaders of four Leaderboard firms have to say about how the legal industry is preparing for next year.
November 28, 2023
The 2023 Law360 Pulse Leaderboard

Check out the Law360 Pulse Leaderboard to see which first-in-class firms made the list this year.
November 27, 2023
Zuckerberg Rejected Mental Health Filter Policy, States Say

Meta Platforms Inc. knows its platforms are used by millions of underage children and its CEO Mark Zuckerberg personally shot down a proposed policy to ban image filters found to be harmful to social media users' mental health, according to a newly unsealed version of states' lawsuit filed last week.
November 27, 2023
Self-Driving Tech Co. Investors Sue Over Misused Image Claim

Executives and directors of self-driving car company Luminar Technologies Inc. face a shareholder derivative complaint alleging they damaged investors after a competitor accused the company of using an image of its proprietary technology in a pitch to investors.
November 27, 2023
Judge In Del. Asks DOJ To Look Into IP Edge Patent Litigation

The top federal judge in Delaware concluded Monday that the Texas attorneys behind prolific patent litigation funding outfit IP Edge might have broken the law — and their ethical obligations as lawyers — by litigating ferociously for settlements from tech companies while operating behind a shadowy network of "relatively unsophisticated individuals."
November 27, 2023
Investors In Sensing-Tech Co. Sue In Del. To Block Share Sale

Stockholders of sensing-tech company Aeva Technologies sued its directors and officers in Delaware's Court of Chancery on Monday for a preliminary injunction to block a potentially "massively" dilutive stock sale allegedly lined up without clear impact estimates.
November 27, 2023
FTX Settles BlockFi Dispute Over $744M Crypto Sale

Bankrupt cryptocurrency exchange FTX said it has settled lender BlockFi's objection to its proposed sale of $744 million in cryptocurrency held in Grayscale Investments trust funds, agreeing to explicitly reference liens the lender is asserting on the funds.
November 27, 2023
Del. Vice Chancellor Calls Ex-AG Barr 'Doubly Wrong' On ESG

Delaware Vice Chancellor J. Travis Laster has called out as "profoundly misguided" published comments by former U.S. Attorney General William P. Barr criticizing the state's top corporate law courts for "flirtation" with environmental, social and governance principles.
November 27, 2023
Arthrex Gets PTAB To Strike Down More P Tech Patents

The Patent Trial and Appeal Board has again sided with medical device company Arthrex Inc. in its patent dispute with P Tech LLC, finding as obvious two additional P Tech surgery patents that are being litigated in federal district court.
November 27, 2023
Crypto Game Co. Neon Says Investor Is 'Raiding' Its Coffers

Six founders of blockchain gaming studio Neon Machine Inc. filed a derivative lawsuit on the company's behalf in Delaware's Court of Chancery on Monday, seeking to stop its controlling stockholder and new self-appointed CEO from destroying the company and "raiding or attempting to raid Neon's coffers."
November 27, 2023
US Trustee Balks At MedStaff Firm's Bass Berry Retention

The Office of the U.S. Trustee objected to the proposed retention of Bass Berry & Sims PLC by debtor American Physician Partners, saying the request to hire the firm as special counsel would call for duties beyond that of special counsel retention.
November 27, 2023
Catching Up With Delaware's Chancery Court

Delaware's Chancery Court stuffed a lot into a shortened Thanksgiving week, with new cases involving wrestling promoter Vince McMahon, billionaire Howard Lutnick and activist investor Carl Icahn.
November 22, 2023
Triple Trouble: Justices Set To Scrutinize 3-Strikes Circuit Split

One of the most heavily litigated laws at the U.S. Supreme Court — three-strikes sentencing instituted under a Reagan-era clampdown on street violence and drugs — returns to the high court Monday, but this visit will be anything but ordinary, occurring amid an eruption of circuit court conflicts and presenting the prospect of a jolt to the nation's criminal defense docket.
November 22, 2023
Teamsters Locals Want Out Of Yellow's Stalled Reorg Suit

Three Teamsters locals said Yellow Corp. has overblown their roles in a Kansas federal suit alleging the labor groups held up corporate restructuring that cost the trucking business $137 million, arguing Wednesday that the decision-making at issue rests only with the International Brotherhood of Teamsters.
November 22, 2023
3rd Circ. To Rehear EPA Oil Refinery Permit Case

The Third Circuit has agreed to rehear a case to clarify its interpretation of the law after it previously held that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency couldn't force an existing oil refinery to get a strict air quality permit that only applies to newly constructed facilities.
November 22, 2023
Icahn Investor Sues In Del. Over Alleged Ponzi Scheme

A unitholder and limited partner of Icahn Enterprises LP has sued the partnership and affiliate Icahn Enterprises GP Inc. in Delaware's Court of Chancery, seeking to inspect the company books in response to an analyst's report that it is operating a "Ponzi-like economic structure."
November 22, 2023
Bioverativ Class Seeks Sanctions For Insiders' Trades

Stockholders who recently won a partial $84 million award in a challenge to an $11.6 billion sale of biomedical venture Bioverativ to Sanofi Inc. have asked Delaware's Court of Chancery to sanction a former Bioverativ director and the hedge fund he led for failure to produce records.
November 22, 2023
Kidde-Fenwal Gets Ch. 11 Mediation For Foam Liability Claims

A Delaware bankruptcy judge directed fire-suppression company Kidde-Fenwal Inc. to enter mediation in its Chapter 11 case to try to pare down thousands of pollution and personal injury claims asserted against it in connection with its aqueous foam products.
November 22, 2023
Attys' 'Obstructive' Deposition Conduct Chided By Chancery

Delaware's chancellor has reprimanded attorneys for global automotive parts manufacturer First Brands Group LLC for their conduct during a deposition of the company's CEO amid Chancery Court litigation with engine parts manufacturer Walbro LLC, calling their behavior "inconsistent with what Delaware courts expect."
November 22, 2023
Florida Tribe Seeks To Overturn EPA Water Permit Decision

A Native American tribe has asked a federal court for a quick win in its lawsuit challenging the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's approval of Florida's effort to take over a Clean Water Act permitting program, saying the tribe's waters are outside the state's regulatory jurisdiction.
November 21, 2023
AbbVie Says Rivals' Rinvoq Generics Infringe 34 Patents

AbbVie has lodged 136 patent infringement claims against Sandoz and a handful of other pharmaceutical companies, accusing them of infringing dozens of AbbVie's patents with their proposed generic versions of its blockbuster immunosuppressant Rinvoq, according to a suit filed in Delaware federal court.
November 21, 2023
Food Co. Investors Allege Insider Trades Before Subway Exit

Shareholders of New York online food ordering company Olo Inc. sued its officers and directors in Delaware's Court of Chancery, alleging in a complaint made public Tuesday that they sold stock at inflated prices while hiding information that fast-food franchise Subway, the company's largest client at the time, was planning to yank its business.
November 21, 2023
Smart Window SPAC Investors Sue Cantor, Lutnick In Del.

Investors in a blank-check company that took public energy-saving smart window venture View Inc. have sued billionaire Howard Lutnick, Cantor Fitzgerald LP and others in Delaware's Court of Chancery, seeking damages for a special-purpose acquisition company deal that saw the window company's claims shattered.
November 21, 2023
First Guaranty, Ex-Staff Seek OK On $1.75M WARN Deal

First Guaranty Mortgage and a proposed class representing employees laid off in 2022 asked a Delaware bankruptcy judge to approve a settlement of $1.75 million to close out the ex-staff's WARN Act claims in a Chapter 11 adversary proceeding against the home loan originator.

Editor's Picks

DocuSign's Bad Conduct Warrants Fee Shift, Ex-CEO Says

DocuSign's ex-CEO wants the Delaware Chancery Court to order the e-signature company to pay at least $709,000 for legal fees he has incurred in litigation alleging the company tried to "bully" him into resigning from its board and made false filings saying he resigned as a director.

Expert Analysis

Chancery's 'Unfair Deal, Fair Price' Ruling Part Of A Trend

The Delaware Court of Chancery's recent decision in In re: Straight Path Communications is the latest in a line of recent post-trial rulings by the court that seem to prioritize a fair price in determining damage awards — even when a transaction has been clouded by an unfair process, say attorneys at V&E.
Asserting 'Presence-Of-Counsel' Defense In Securities Trials

As illustrated by the fraud trial of FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried, defense attorneys in securities trials might consider arguing that counsel had some involvement in the conduct at issue — if the more formal advice-of-counsel defense is unavailable and circumstances allow for a privilege waiver, say Joseph Dever and Matthew Elkin at Cozen O'Connor.
An Overview Of Circuit Courts' Interlocutory Motion Standards

The Federal Arbitration Act allows litigants to file an immediate appeal from an order declining to enforce an arbitration agreement, but the circuit courts differ on the specific requirements for the underlying order as well as which motion must be filed, as demonstrated in several 2023 decisions, says Kristen Mueller at Mueller Law.
The Case For Post-Bar Clerk Training Programs At Law Firms

In today's competitive legal hiring market, an intentionally designed training program for law school graduates awaiting bar admission can be an effective way of creating a pipeline of qualified candidates, says Brent Daub at Gilson Daub.
Attorneys Have An Ethical Duty To Protect The Judiciary

The tenor of public disagreement and debate has become increasingly hostile against judges, and though the legislative branch is trying to ameliorate this safety gap, lawyers have a moral imperative and professional requirement to stand with judges in defusing attacks against them and their rulings, says Deborah Winokur at Cozen O'Connor.
AI Can Help Lawyers Overcome The Programming Barrier

Legal professionals without programming expertise can use generative artificial intelligence to harness the power of automation and other technology solutions to streamline their work, without the steep learning curve traditionally associated with coding, says George Zalepa at Greenberg Traurig.
10 Essential Bankruptcy Litigation Tips For In-House Counsel

Bankruptcy litigation is a complex and multifaceted area of law that poses unique challenges for in-house counsel, and there are several tools at legal professionals' disposal, like appraisals and understanding jurisdictions, to stay well-informed and protect their companies' interests, says Alison Ashmore at Dykema.
Preparing Law Students For A New, AI-Assisted Legal World

As artificial intelligence rapidly transforms the legal landscape, law schools must integrate technology and curricula that address AI’s innate challenges — from ethics to data security — to help students stay ahead of the curve, say Daniel Garrie at Law & Forensics, Ryan Abbott at JAMS and Karen Silverman at Cantellus Group.
General Counsel Need Data Literacy To Keep Up With AI

With the rise of accessible and powerful generative artificial intelligence solutions, it is imperative for general counsel to understand the use and application of data for myriad important activities, from evaluating the e-discovery process to monitoring compliance analytics and more, says Colin Levy at Malbek.
Tips For Avoiding Disputes From M&A Earnout Provisions

Attorneys at Freshfields review key Delaware cases to outline several important considerations that may reduce the risk of an earnout dispute arising from a merger agreement and help the parties navigate disputes when they do occur.
Del. Dispatch: Refining M&A Terms After Twitter Investor Suit

The Delaware Court of Chancery's recent decision in Crispo v. Musk — invalidating a merger agreement provision that has been commonly used to disincentivize buyers from wrongful merger termination — should cause target companies to consider new approaches to ensure the payment of lost premium damages, say attorneys at Fried Frank.
Navigating Discovery Of Generative AI Information

As generative artificial intelligence tools become increasingly ubiquitous, companies must make sure to preserve generative AI data when there is reasonable expectation of litigation, and to include transcripts in litigation hold notices, as they may be relevant to discovery requests, say Nick Peterson and Corey Hauser at Wiley.
Finding Focus: Strategies For Attorneys With ADHD

Given the prevalence of ADHD among attorneys, it is imperative that the legal community gain a better understanding of how ADHD affects well-being, and that resources and strategies exist for attorneys with this disability to manage their symptoms and achieve success, say Casey Dixon at Dixon Life Coaching and Krista Larson at Stinson.
Earnout Contract Considerations After NC Good Faith Ruling

The North Carolina Supreme Court's recent Value Health Solutions v. Pharmaceutical Research decision, holding the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing did not apply in an earnout dispute related to an asset sale, demonstrates the need for practitioners to pay careful attention to milestone concepts in M&A transactions, says Benjamin Hicks at Wagner Hicks.
Cos.' Trade Secret Measures Must Adjust To Remote-Work Era

Several recent cases demonstrate that companies need to reevaluate and adjust their trade secret protection strategies in this new age of remote work, says Stephanie Riley at Womble Bond.