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As we have covered previously, one of the most noticeable trends that has emerged in the current boom in UK public M&A activity[1] is the heightened level of target shareholder opposition to bids. This is manifesting itself in a number of ways, including through increased and novel “bumpitrage”[2] campaigns as well as through institutional investors becoming more vocal in expressing their discontent at proposed bids. There appears to be a general feeling among a number of the largest UK institutional investors that private equity are acquiring UK public companies “too cheaply”.…
Continue Reading UK Bids: Take-Private Boom Sees Negotiating Power Shift from Target Boards to Shareholders

In the past week, two further potential bids were announced in relation to FTSE 250 companies – KKR’s potential bid for John Laing and Blackstone’s potential bid for St Modwen. This follows a number of recent bids for UK listed companies, many of which were launched following the announcement in November 2020 by Pfizer and…

In Snow Phipps v. KCAKE Acquisition, the Delaware Court of Chancery ordered the buyer (Kohlberg) to close on its $550 million agreement to purchase DecoPac, a cake decorations supplier.  In doing so, the court easily rejected the buyer’s claims that the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in a material adverse effect (“MAE”) and that the steps…

On March 11, 2021, President Biden signed into law the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (the “ARPA”), the much-debated $1.9 trillion COVID-19 stimulus legislation. The ARPA includes a provision, added by Senate amendment on March 6, 2021, which will further limit the deductibility of amounts deemed to be “excessive employee remuneration” under…

The following post was originally included as part of our recently published memorandum “Selected Issues for Boards of Directors in 2021”.

As we look back on the mergers and acquisitions landscape of 2020, clear trends emerge and paint a picture of what can be expected in 2021. Certain of these trends seemingly came…

In In re Nine West LBO Securities Litigation, Case No. 20-2941 (S.D.N.Y. Dec. 4, 2020), U.S. District Court Judge Jed Rakoff denied a motion to dismiss claims brought by the Nine West liquidating trustee against former directors of Jones Group (the predecessor to Nine West) for breach of fiduciary duty and aiding and abetting breach of fiduciary duty stemming from a 2014 going-private transaction with private equity sponsor Sycamore Group.  While it remains to be seen whether the defendant directors ultimately will be found liable for such claims, we highlight certain lessons learned and best practices that can be followed in light of the ruling.…
Continue Reading Lessons Learned and Best Practices in LBO Transactions Following the Nine West Decision

Between July 28, 2020 and September 1, 2020, the National Venture Capital Association (NVCA) released updates to its model legal documents for use in venture capital financing transactions. This memorandum will explain the changes to these model forms and some of the reasons for, and implications of, such changes.

As background, the NVCA is an…