The Little Caesars Arena, replacing the Joe Louis Arena, is the new stadium in Detroit that many locals are hoping will breathe some economic life into midtown. These hopes are amplified by the fact that the Detroit Pistons are joining the Red Wings in calling the new stadium their home. However, at this time it…
Year: 2017
Law and Economics of Financial Deregulation
Almost ten years since the beginning of the Great Recession, the fallout is still fresh in the minds of most Americans, politicians, and economists. The impact it had on the the greater part of the American people pushed Congress to pass reforms to protect their constituents and to prevent a similar crisis from happening in…
The Benefits and Drawbacks of the JOBS Act
In April 2012, the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act, better known as the JOBS Act, was signed into law, receiving bipartisan support. The JOBS Act is aimed at reducing securities regulations for emerging growth companies to help these companies have access to the capital markets. In theory, the Act seems to have a laudable goal:…
An Examination of the Westinghouse Bankruptcy and the Company’s Future
On March 29, Westinghouse Electric Company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy to restructure after facing costly issues at power plants currently under construction.1 The filing comes slightly more than 10 years after Japanese conglomerate Toshiba acquired the company for $5.4 billion.2 Westinghouse has been known as one of the United States’ most dominant nuclear power…
Looking Back at the Year’s Most Controversial – and Exciting – IPO
Restricting shareholder rights is not a new phenomenon. Companies frequently issue stocks with differential voting rights so that pre-IPO investors can maintain voting control. Many multi-class share companies give at least token voting rights to public shareholders. The most common structure is to give ten votes per share to insiders, and one vote per share…
This post is a follow-up my previous posts covering the Yahoo-Verizon merger.1 The Threat of Cyber-crime Cyber-crime is one of the greatest threats that businesses face,2 and it’s a problem that is only becoming more prevalent. The New York Office of the Attorney General saw a 60% increase in data breach reports in 2016 compared…
The Fallout of the Yahoo Hack
This post is an update of my previous post covering the Verizon-Yahoo merger.1 The Effect on the Verizon-Yahoo Merger Amidst the negotiations for Yahoo’s acquisition by Verizon, Yahoo revealed that its customer data had been stolen in a cyber-attack – with Verizon reportedly looking for a $1 billion reduction in the price.2 A recent Yahoo…
Google Sues Uber Over Self-Driving Technology
Google’s parent company Alphabet is suing Uber Technologies, alleging Uber stole trade secrets to jump-start its own autonomous vehicle program.1 Waymo, the Alphabet-owned self-driving truck company, has filed against Otto, a self-driving truck company, and its parent company, Uber.2 The suit revolves around former Google employee Anthony Levandowski. Levandowski left Google in 2016 to form…
Two Major Health Insurance Company Mergers Blocked: Antitrust Laws and the Future Uncertainty of the Affordable Care Act to Blame
On February 14, 2017, Aetna and Humana, two major United States healthcare companies, called off their planned merger due to a federal court ruling that blocked the deal last month.1 Anthem and Cigna, two other major US healthcare companies, also called off their planned merger the same day.2 The Aetna-Humana deal was worth $34 billion…
The Dissolution of Motiva Enterprises, the Third Largest Oil & Gas Refiner on the Gulf Coast
Motiva Enterprises LLC (“Motiva”) is a joint venture between Royal Dutch Shell PLC (“Shell”) and Saudi Arabian Oil Company (“Saudi Aramco”), through its subsidiary, Saudi Refining Inc.1 The joint venture was formed in 1998 and became a 50/50 joint venture between Saudi Aramco and Shell in 2002 when Chevron Corp. exited the venture as part…