Vice Chancellor Morgan T. Zurn, fresh off a two-day hearing in a blockbuster case involving
The court will be closed Tuesday for Independence Day, and no proceedings are scheduled Monday. Here are more highlights from its calendar this week:
Thursday: In the Matter of The Jeremy Paradise Dynasty Trust & the Andrew Paradise Dynasty Trust, No. 2021-0354, hearing 7/6/23.
At issue: Chancellor Kathaleen St. J. McCormick will weigh a request for legal fees by fiduciaries of the stock trust at the center of a court fight involving Andrew Paradise, founder of the Skillz Inc. eSports platform, and his brother. The lawsuit by Jeremy Paradise accused Andrew of fraudulently seizing control of the trust, which holds the stock Jeremy was given for helping to think up the business. The suit technically targeted the trust fiduciaries as defendants, not Andrew. After McCormick ruled against Jeremy in February, they sought fees, although their court filings have redacted the amount.
Court action: Hearing in Wilmington, Del.
Skillz eSports Founder’s Brother Loses Bid to Reform Stock Trust
Thursday: MXY Holdings LLC v. All JS Greenspace LLC, No. 2022-0220, bench ruling 7/6/23.
At issue: Zurn will rule on a bid by three members of the Schottenstein family—which runs prominent retail brands including American Eagle Outfitters Inc.—to exit a fraud case brought by cannabis company Moxie Inc. The lawsuit, filed in March 2022, claims American Eagle chairman Jay Schottenstein, his wife, and one of his sons used bogus transaction talks to usurp business opportunities and walk away from the nine-figure deal with $9 million in ill-gotten loans. The Schottensteins have raised a variety of defenses: that the case is barred by Canadian bankruptcy proceedings involving the defunct merger target, that it rehashes claims already rejected by a court in Florida, and that it’s a straightforward contract dispute not involving fraud.
Court action: Telephonic bench ruling.
Schottensteins Seek Dismissal of Fraud Claims From Cannabis Deal
Friday: 26 Capital Acquisition Corp. v. Tiger Resort Asia Ltd., No. 2023-0128, pretrial conference 7/7/23.
At issue: Vice Chancellor J. Travis Laster will preside over a conference ahead of a five-day trial set to start July 10 over the sale of Manila’s largest luxury casino to a special purpose acquisition company. Laster agreed in February to fast-track the lawsuit by a blank-check affiliate of SpringOwl Asset Management LLC, which claims a unit of Japan’s Universal Entertainment Corp. is trying to stall the transaction while it looks for a pretext to back out. Universal Entertainment recently regained control of the business, the Okada Manila Resort & Casino, after an unsuccessful coup attempt by co-founder Kazuo Okada, a Japanese billionaire facing criminal charges in multiple countries. The Japanese slot-machine maker has counterclaimed, accusing the SPAC and its CEO of “a concerted and increasingly erratic campaign” to “pursue closing at all costs in pursuit of a windfall.”
Court action: Pretrial conference via Zoom.
Manila Casino Fight Over SPAC Deal Fast-Tracked in Delaware (1)
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