Most companies will continue to update their
Other companies, particularly smaller
disclosures vis-Ă -vis the impact of COVID-19.
companies, are facing Chapter 7 liquidation.
For lucky companies, these updates will merely be a question of reframing revenue guidance. Less lucky companies face the trickier challenge of discerning whether there have been fundamental economic shifts that impact their business, and then informing their shareholders about these changes in a responsible way. Failure to get this right will, of course, inevitably lead to D&O litigation.
2.2 Bankruptcy Personal and corporate bankruptcy filings have been significant in 2020, and this unfortunate trend will continue in 2021. This is the inevitable result of the COVID-19 pandemic's terrible impact on broad swaths of the economy. Chapter 11 bankruptcies will allow some major corporations to restructure, and thus live to fight another day.
Facing a short, financially distressed runway, some directors will want to resign from the board, which may or may not be a good idea, depending on the situation. All directors and officers will be well-served to make refinancing or liquidation plans sooner than later. Doing so will help them avoid the most common mistake, which is failing to realize how much time and money it actually takes to get through a Chapter 11 or Chapter 7 bankruptcy proceeding effectively.
2.3 Securities Class Action Lawsuits Is the dip in the rate of securities class action filings due to courts being closed for business as a result of the pandemic? Possibly. We will know more by the end of the year. It is certainly premature to celebrate given the volatility we have seen in the D&O market. Even if the case count is trending somewhat downwards, we still expect to see a significant number of class action cases to be filed through the end of 2020 as well as in 2021. Further, there is an unfortunate and historically large number of open securities class action cases waiting to be settled.
D&O LOOKING AHEAD 2021 | WOODRUFF-SAWYER & CO.
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