A pair of new high-dollar suits in Delaware's Court of Chancery showed last week that post-deal stock appraisal suits still have legs, despite some efforts to reduce potential from deal-price gains challenges. The week ended with Delaware's justices nipping $100 million from the attorney fees owed by Tesla CEO Elon Musk from $176.2 million to roughly $70.9 million, rejecting part of a Court of Chancery fee calculation.
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WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 4, 2026 Law360 iOS App Law360 Android App Follow Law360 on Facebook Follow Law360 on LinkedIn Follow Law360 on Twitter

TOP NEWS

Catching Up With Delaware's Chancery Court

By Jeff Montgomery

A pair of new high-dollar suits in Delaware's Court of Chancery showed last week that post-deal stock appraisal suits still have legs, despite some efforts to reduce potential from deal-price gains challenges. The week ended with Delaware's justices nipping $100 million from the attorney fees owed by Tesla CEO Elon Musk from $176.2 million to roughly $70.9 million, rejecting part of a Court of Chancery fee calculation.

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CD&R To Pay $70M To Settle Covetrus Sale Dispute

By Sydney Price

Private equity firm Clayton Dubilier & Rice LLC and others have agreed to pay $70 million to settle a suit in Delaware's Court of Chancery by shareholders of animal health company Covetrus Inc. accusing them of failing to disclose vital information to shareholders when joining forces with another private equity firm to acquire Covetrus in 2022.

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Del. Justices Won't Revive Suit Over Twitter Stock Sale Loss

By Jeff Montgomery

Delaware's Supreme Court rejected on Monday a Washington state software engineer's late-filed, pro se attempt to resurrect a suit seeking damages after his sale of Twitter shares when Elon Musk briefly balked at a $44 billion closing on his company in 2024.

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Chancery Keeps Coinbase Insider Trading Suit Alive

By Jarek Rutz

The Delaware Chancery Court has refused to shut down a stockholder derivative suit accusing Coinbase Global Inc. insiders of reaping billions by selling shares ahead of a steep stock drop, concluding that the company's special litigation committee failed to meet Delaware's exacting independence standards.

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Law360 Seeks Members For Its 2026 Editorial Boards

Law360 is looking for avid readers of our publications to serve as members of our 2026 editorial advisory boards.

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POLICY & REGULATION

Del. Lawmakers OK Review, Revision Of Property Assessment

By Zak Kostro

Delaware would authorize New Castle County's Office of Finance to review and revise property reassessments for tax purposes if a mistake were made in the reassessment process or certain changes in value occurred under a bill approved by state lawmakers and headed to the governor.

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Trump Admin's Bid To End Haitian Protections Paused

By Rae Ann Varona

A D.C. federal judge on Monday postponed the Trump administration's termination of temporary protected status for Haitians, saying five Haitian nationals who sued the administration are likely to succeed in showing that the termination is unlawful.

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COURT OF CHANCERY

Honeywell Faces Bid For Fee Advancement In Russia Case

By Jarek Rutz

The Delaware Chancery Court on Monday heard a sharply contested argument over whether a former Honeywell executive is entitled to advancement of legal fees tied to Russian insolvency and customs proceedings, as well as "fees on fees," in a dispute that turned less on the underlying foreign matters than the mechanics of Delaware advancement law.

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Bausch, Lannett To Pay $17.9M In Drug Price-Fixing Deal

By Abigail Harrison

Lannett Company Inc., Bausch Health US LLC and Bausch Health America Inc. will pay $17.85 million to settle allegations by 48 states and territories that they conspired to fix prices for generic drugs, according to a motion filed Monday seeking preliminary approval of the deal.

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BANKRUPTCY COURT

Investment Firm Hits Ch. 11 In Delaware With $100M+ Debt

By Emlyn Cameron

Two companies, investment company Michal International Investment LLC and MII Aviation Services LLC, filed for bankruptcy in Delaware, listing liabilities of at least $10 million and $100 million, respectively.

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Data Co. Seeks Liquidation With $194M Debt

By Emily Lever

Marketing research company Premise Data has filed for Chapter 7 liquidation in Delaware bankruptcy court, listing $194 million of debt and seeking to wind down after selling what it says was the most viable portion of its business.

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THIRD CIRCUIT

3rd Circ. Affirms Fee Awards For Immigration Habeas Actions

By Tom Lotshaw

A Third Circuit panel ruled federal law authorizes attorney fee awards for immigrants who successfully challenge their detention through habeas actions, affirming awards made to two noncitizens who were detained for over a year and denied bond hearings.

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DISTRICT COURT

'Star Trek'-Citing Judge Says Moderna Can't Ax $5B Vax IP Suit

By Lauren Berg

Moderna Inc. will have to face most of a rival mRNA vaccine developer's $5 billion patent suit over the company's COVID-19 vaccines at a trial in Delaware, a federal judge ruled on Monday, invoking "Star Trek" in a summary judgment order that left issues like patent invalidity up to the jury.

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Teamsters Look To Ax Kraft Heinz's Challenge To Grievance

By Emily Brill

Kraft Heinz shouldn't be allowed to scuttle a benefits fight by arguing that it should have been routed through the company healthcare plan's dispute resolution process, a Teamsters local told a Delaware federal judge, saying the dispute can be resolved through the grievance and arbitration process.

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EXPERT ANALYSIS

Series

The Biz Court Digest: Dispatches From Utah's Newest Court

While a robust body of law hasn't yet developed since the Utah Business and Chancery Court's founding in October 2024, the number of cases filed there has recently picked up, and its existence illustrates Utah's desire to be top of mind for businesses across the country, says Evan Strassberg at Michael Best.

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NYC Bar Opinion Warns Attys On Use Of AI Recording Tools

Attorneys who use artificial intelligence tools to record, transcribe and summarize conversations with clients should heed the New York City Bar Association’s recent opinion addressing the legal and ethical risks posed by such tools, and follow several best practices to avoid violating the Rules of Professional Conduct, say attorneys at Smith Gambrell.

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LEGAL INDUSTRY

Habeas Cases Flood Courts After Immigrant Detention Shift

By Jack Karp

Federal courts have been inundated with a flood of cases stemming from the Trump administration's revised approach to the detention of unauthorized immigrants, with judges routinely ruling against the government as immigration attorneys scramble to keep up.

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Baker McKenzie Describes Client Fallout After Assault Claims

By Alison Knezevich

Several clients asked the leader of Baker McKenzie's Washington, D.C., office to stop handling work for them after he was accused of sexual assault, according to a new filing in a defamation case against the former firm associate who made the allegations.

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Goldstein Knew What Was On His Returns, Accountant Claims

By Jared Foretek

The top outside accountant handling tax returns for SCOTUSblog founder Thomas Goldstein and his law firm said Tuesday that Goldstein wasn't forthcoming about his gambling records and that he firmly believed the former U.S. Supreme Court attorney knew what was in his allegedly false tax returns when they were filed.

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Approach The Bench: Judge Yew Warns Of Deepfake Evidence

By Cara Bayles and Steven Trader

After decades on the bench of the Santa Clara County Superior Court, Judge Erica Yew began to regard the future of courtroom evidence with some trepidation, as the rapid evolution of artificial intelligence made it easier to falsify documents, photos and videos.

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4 Attys Sanctioned Over AI Hallucinations In Legal Brief

By Elliot Weld

A Kansas federal judge has issued sanctions against a group of lawyers representing a technology company in a patent dispute and has referred one attorney for disciplinary action over case citations hallucinated by ChatGPT appearing in a legal brief.

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Pretti Killing Highlights Free Speech And Gun Rights Tension

By Marco Poggio

The killing of Alex Pretti, a 37-year-old U.S. citizen and lawful gun owner, by federal immigration enforcement agents in Minneapolis last month brought to the fore a long-standing tension between two constitutional rights that the U.S. Supreme Court has never resolved, legal experts say.

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Floyd Prosecutor, Defense Atty To Represent Pretti's Family

By Lynn LaRowe

The relatives of a Minnesota intensive care nurse killed by ICE agents have secured legal representation from a former federal prosecutor who helped secure the conviction of an ex-police officer in the killing of George Floyd, and a criminal defense attorney coming off a high-profile murder case.

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Feds Fight Cyberstalking Atty's Bid For Pretrial Release

By Adrian Cruz

The U.S. government has asked a Texas federal judge to reject a bid for pretrial release from a currently detained attorney charged with cyberstalking other attorneys at BigLaw firms.

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Queens Defenders Ex-Director Admits Embezzling Over $100K

By Pete Brush

The former longtime head of Queens Defenders copped to a count of fraud conspiracy in Brooklyn federal court Tuesday after prosecutors said she diverted over $100,000 intended for indigent residents and used the money for a lavish lifestyle.

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Analysis

Squires And Stewart's Patent Office, By The Numbers

By Theresa Schliep

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has seen sweeping changes under Director John Squires and Deputy Director Coke Morgan Stewart, ranging from pro-patent owner policies at the Patent Trial and Appeal Board to employment shake-ups that have prompted departures from the agency.

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Senate Confirms Picks For Texas, Ark. District Court Seats

By Courtney Buble

The Senate confirmed two U.S. district court judges, for Texas and Arkansas, on Tuesday.

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Promo that reads 2025 Practice Groups of the Year

LAW FIRMS IN TODAY'S NEWS

Abato Rubenstein

Advisors LLC

Arnold & Porter

Ashby & Geddes

Avanti Law Group

Baker McKenzie

Bernstein Litowitz

Bracewell LLP

Bryan Cave

Buether Joe

Chipman Brown

Fish & Richardson

Fisher Patterson

Friedman Oster

Giskan Solotaroff

Gividen Law

Goodwin Procter

Grant & Eisenhofer

Heyman Enerio

Jackson Lewis PC

Jones Day

Kessler Topaz

Kirkland & Ellis

Kuchler & Cotton

Kurzban Kurzban

Labaton Keller

Latham & Watkins

Leach & Walker

Lewis Brisbois

Marshall Gerstein

Maslon LLP

Michael Best & Friedrich

Morgan Lewis

Morris Nichols

Morrison & Foerster

Munger Tolles

Napoli Shkolnik

O'Donoghue & O'Donoghue

Ogletree Deakins

Prokosch Law

Richards Layton

Romanucci & Blandin

Ross Aronstam

Schwegman Lundberg

Shaw Keller

Smith Gambrell

Smith Katzenstein

Sullivan & Cromwell

Williams & Connolly

Wilson Sonsini

Young Conaway

COMPANIES IN TODAY'S NEWS

American Arbitration Association

American Bar Association

Andreessen Horowitz LLC

Apple Inc.

Arbutus Biopharma Corp.

Atreides Management LP

Aurobindo Pharma Ltd.

Bausch Health Cos. Inc.

Burke Inc.

Cato Institute

Chevron Corp.

Clayton Dubilier & Rice LLC

Coinbase Global Inc.

Comerica Inc.

Cornell University

Covetrus Inc.

Duke University

Everytown for Gun Safety

Fifth Third Bancorp

Fort Point Capital

Gelman, Rosenberg & Freedman

Heineken Holding NV

Honeywell International Inc.

Huntington Bancshares Inc.

Janus Henderson Group PLC

Jefferies Financial Group Inc.

Lannett Company, Inc

LinkedIn Corp.

Meta Platforms Inc.

Michelin Group

Moderna Inc.

Moelis & Co.

National Football Museum Inc.

Nationalities Service Center

New York City Bar Association

Northern Mariana Islands Retirement Fund

Overstock.com Inc.

Rust Consulting Inc.

Sandoz International GmbH

Second Amendment Foundation

Spotify Technology SA

TPG Capital LP

Tesla Inc.

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd.

The Kraft Heinz Co.

Twitter Inc.

U.S. News & World Report LP

Victory Park Capital Advisors LLC

X Corp.

YouTube Inc.

Zuora Inc.

GOVERNMENT AGENCIES IN TODAY'S NEWS

Alaska Department of Law

California Commission on Judicial Performance

Commonwealth of Massachusetts

Connecticut Attorney General's Office

Delaware Court of Chancery

Executive Office for Immigration Review

Federal Bureau of Investigation

Internal Revenue Service

Minnesota Attorney General's Office

National Labor Relations Board

Patent Trial and Appeal Board

Tennessee Attorney General's Office

U.S. Army

U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Maryland

U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of New York

U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Texas

U.S. Attorney's Office for the Western District of Pennsylvania

U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit

U.S. Department of Homeland Security

U.S. Department of Justice

U.S. District & Bankruptcy Courts of Southern District of Texas

U.S. District Court for the Central District of California

U.S. District Court for the Central District of Illinois

U.S. District Court for the District of Alaska

U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia

U.S. District Court for the District of Connecticut

U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware

U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland

U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota

U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California

U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York

U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania

U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas

U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas

U.S. District Court for the Western District of Arkansas

U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement

U.S. Merit Systems Protection Board

U.S. Patent and Trademark Office

U.S. Senate

U.S. Supreme Court

United States District Court for the District of Kansas

Utah Legislature