News & Commentary

A lawsuit filed by Andrews & Springer LLC challenging . . . 

On July 18, 2014, Andrews & Springer LLC and Scott + Scott LLP filed a derivative class action lawsuit on behalf of Duke Energy Corporation ("Duke" or the "Company") against the Company's board of directors alleging breaches of fiduciary duty for exposing Duke to billions of dollars in liability over its coal ash management. 

On August 18, 2014, Andrews & Springer LLC filed a lawsuit against Del Frisco's Restaurant Group LLC and affiliates . . .

Andrews & Springer, LLC, a boutique securities class action law firm focussed on representing shareholders nationwide, has filed a class action in the Maryland Circuit Court for Baltimore City against the Board of Directors of American Realty Capital Healthcare Trust ("ARCH" or the "Company") for alleged breaches of fiduciary duties.

On June 11, 2014, the Delaware Court of Chancery approved the law firms of Andrews & Springer LLC, Barrack Rodos & Bacine and Bernstein Litowitz Berger & Grossman LLP as co-lead counsel. 

On May 29, 2014, Andrews & Springer LLC filed a class action and derivative lawsuit on behalf of public stockholders of Cheniere Energy, Inc. ("Cheniere" or the "Company") against Chief Executive Officer ("CEO") Charif Souki, certain Cheniere executives and the Company's board of directors.

On May 5, 2014, Andrews & Springer LLC and Kahn Swick & Foti LLC filed a class action lawsuit against Susser Holdings Corp. (the "Company") and its board of directors alleging breaches of fiduciary duty in connection with the merger of the Company with Energy Transfer Partners L.P.

On April 22, 2014, William A. Ackman (“Ackman”), CEO of Pershing Square Capital Investment (“Pershing Square”) and Valeant Pharmaceuticals International, Inc. (“Valeant”) (NYSE: VRX) jointly announced an unsolicited bid to acquire all the outstanding shares of Allergan, Inc. (“Allergan”) (NYSE: AGN) in a transaction valued at approximately $45.6 billion, or $48.30 in cash and 0.83 shares of Valeant common stock.  

On March 25, 2014, Third Point LLC, a hedge fund run by shareholder activist Daniel Loeb, filed a lawsuit against the world's oldest fine art broker and auction house Sotheby's (the "Company"). Third Point's complaint can be found here.

On April 17, 2014, Andrews & Springer LLC and Milberg LLP filed a class action lawsuit against Zygo Corp. (the "Company") and its board of directors alleging breaches of fiduciary duty in connection with the merger of the Company.

On April 7, 2014, Andrews & Springer LLC and Milberg LLP filed a class action lawsuit against SWS Group, Inc. (the "Company") and its board of directors alleging breaches of fiduciary duty in connection with the merger of the Company with one of its shareholders Hilltop Holdings, Inc. ("Hilltop").

Andrews & Springer LLC, a Delaware-based law firm representing investors nationwide, has filed suit in the Delaware Chancery Court against the board of directors of DFC Global Corp. ("DFC" or the "Company") for alleged breaches of fiduciary duties in connection with the proposed acquisition of the Company by Lone Star Funds and its affiliates LSF8 Sterling Parent LLC and LSF8 Sterling Merger Company (collectively "Lone Star").

One of the biggest challenges of litigation is finding the time to do the little things that will make your practice easier and more effective for your clients. If you are an out-of-state attorney responsible for taking a deposition in a Delaware case, you may have other questions besides the ones you plan on asking the witness. Questions such as “what objections can be made under Delaware law?” or “what communications, if any, can defense counsel have with their client during a deposition?” are questions that should be answered to protect not only yourself, but also your client(s). The following are a few Delaware rules to keep in mind when participating in a deposition under Delaware law:

On November 4, 2013, in In re Jefferies Group, Inc. Shareholders Litigation, No. 8059-CS (Nov. 4, 2013), the Delaware Court of Chancery considered the latest iteration of the entire fairness standard. In this oral ruling from the bench, Chancellor Leo Strine (now appointed to the Delaware Supreme Court) denied defendants’ motions to dismiss refusing to shift the burden of proof for entire fairness from defendants to plaintiffs. The transcript from this ruling can be found here.

On March 14, 2014, the Delaware Supreme Court issued an opinion in In re MFW Shareholders Litigation, No. 334, 2013 (Del. 2014) which answers the fundamental question as to which standard of review applies to a majority stockholder led freeze-out merger of the minority.