Reprinted with permission from the April 8, 2016 edition of the The Legal Intelligencer. “Why is this taking so long and costing so much?” asked a client. “I thought arbitration was supposed to be quick and cost-efficient.” His complaint was understandable. His company was involved in litigation on a contract that mandated arbitration before a […]
Minority Shareholder Oppression: Rights and Remedies
Reprinted with permission from the January 5, 2016 edition of the The Legal Intelligencer. A client came to me complaining that he had been “squeezed out” by the majority shareholders of the closely held corporation he himself had founded. He was outraged and upset. I assured him that the majority shareholders of a closely held […]
How to Manage the Threat of a Derivative Lawsuit
Reprinted with permission from the March 24, 2015 edition of the The Legal Intelligencer. You’re the chairman or CEO of a major corporation. Unfortunately, your company has had some negative press recently. Maybe it’s lower-than-expected earnings, heightened regulatory scrutiny, a controversial merger negotiation, a securities class action lawsuit, or even some corporate scandal. Whatever the […]
Philadelphia: The City of Bicycle and Pedestrian Love?
July 14, 2015 Bike share came to Center City Philadelphia this past spring. “Welcome to the City of Bicycle Love,” say the bus signs. And it really is great to see more bikes on the streets. But, also this spring near Center City, two cyclists (Jay Mohan and 17-year old Adelso Matos) were killed, and […]
Testing the Boundaries of the Gist of The Action Defense
June 18, 2015 Under Pennsylvania law, the “gist of the action” doctrine supplies a useful defense by which a defendant can prevent a plaintiff from invoking tort principles in an ordinary breach of contract case. Because the defense is both fact-specific and doctrinally ambiguous, however, it has generated considerable litigation over the years. Two recent […]