Lunchtime Workshop: Beyond Approval: The Role of the Delaware Court of Chancery in Settlements of Fiduciary Litigation

Beyond Approval: The Role of the Delaware Court of Chancery in Settlements of Fiduciary Litigation

SYNOPSIS

In the complex landscape of corporate litigation, the Delaware Court of Chancery plays a vital role, wielding considerable influence over the resolution of fiduciary disputes. Scholars and practitioners have concentrated their analyses on the impact of litigated outcomes in shaping corporate governance. Very few studies have focused on the Chancery Court’s role in settlements of such litigation, and they portray the judiciary as a mostly passive participant in the settlement process, merely endorsing party-crafted agreements. 

The paper critically re-examines the role of the Chancery Court in the settlement of fiduciary litigation. It begins by tracking the outcome of all fiduciary duty lawsuits filed from 2013 to 2023, focusing on the prevalence and nature of settlements. This study of nearly 300 settlements and over 100 bench ruling transcripts reveals that the judiciary actively engages in dialogue with the litigants. Rather than simply promoting the settlement of disputes, the Court advances a broad range of policies.

SPEAKER

Gilda Sophie Prestipino
Academic Fellow at the Rock Center for Corporate Governance
Stanford Law School

Gilda Sophie Prestipino is an Academic Fellow at the Rock Center for Corporate Governance. Her research interests include corporate law and governance, bank governance, and financial regulation.

Prior to joining the Rock Center, Gilda was a corporate associate at Kirkland & Ellis LLP in New York (2022-24). Her practice focused on the formation of private equity funds, mergers and acquisitions involving public and private investment management firms, and shareholder activism and hostile takeover defenses. She began her professional career at the European Central Bank (2018-2021), where she supervised significant banking institutions in the Eurozone and worked on macroprudential policy.

Gilda holds an LL.M. in Corporate Governance and Practice from Stanford Law School, and a J.D. equivalent (summa cum laude) from the University of Siena. She has received a number of recognitions and awards, including the Franco Bonelli Scholarship (full merit-based funding for an LL.M., awarded by Italian law firm BonelliErede), and the John Hart Ely Prize for Outstanding Performance in Corporate Governance and Practice. While at Stanford Law School, she served as an associate editor of the Stanford Journal of Law, Business and Finance. Her article “U.S. Corporate Accountability in the ESG Era” was selected for presentation at the European Corporate Governance Institute Young Scholars Workshop on Corporate Purpose (Copenhagen, 2023).

CHAIR

Professor Dan W. Puchniak 
Director, Centre for Commercial Law in Asia
Professor of Law, Yong Pung How School of Law
Singapore Management University  

Dan W. Puchniak is a Professor in the Yong Pung How School of Law (YPHSL) at Singapore Management University, the Director of the YPHSL Centre for Commercial Law in Asia, the Inaugural Director of the Asian Corporate Law Forum, and a Research Member of the European Corporate Governance Institute (ECGI). Dan is an internationally recognized scholar in the field of comparative corporate law and governance, with a focus on Asia. He has received numerous domestic and international awards for his academic research and teaching – most recently, the 2023 ECGI Cleary Gottlieb Law Prize.

Dan’s research has been profiled in The Economist, The Japan Times, and The Business Times.  Dan has taught and given over 100 invited lectures at leading universities, government institutions, international organizations, stock exchanges, and companies around the world on comparative corporate law and governance. He has advised international organizations on the development of corporate law in Asia, served as an expert in high stakes complex corporate law disputes in Asia, and previously practiced corporate commercial litigation in one of Canada’s leading law firms. 

PROGRAMME

12:00pm    Welcome Remarks (Professor Dan W. Puchniak)

12:05pm    Paper Presentation (Ms Gilda Sophie Prestipino)

12:55pm    Q&A

1:15pm       End

REGISTRATION

Register by 15 October 2024, 5pm. 
Lunch bento will be served.

Contact us at ccla@smu.edu.sg. 
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