Delaware Business Litigation Report

Court Of Chancery Applies BJR To Controller Merger

In Re MFW Shareholders Litigation, C.A. 6566-CS (May 29, 2013)

In this important decision the Court of Chancery for the first time has applied a business judgment rule analysis to a review of a merger where a controller is on both sides of the deal. This result limits the old Lynch doctrine that mergers involving a controller on both sides is subject to the intrinsic fairness standard that almost always requires a trial to resolve.  While this short blog cannot do justice to the Court's analysis, it held that the BJR will apply when: (1) the deal is subject to the approval of a SNC and the majority of the minority stockholders, (2) the SNC is independent, (3) the SNC has its own advisors and can say "no", (4) the SNC meets its duty of care, (5) the stockholder vote in fully informed and (6) the  vote is not subject to coercion.

 

 

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