In the interest of objectivity, here's the take of a lawyer friend. I asked him to comment on the court order without explaining any of the background, except to point out that Andy Mann and First Concord were the same thing. This is what he said:
The business re: depositing the shares with the court is what's generally known as
interpleader. Interpleader is a "device" which allows a third party, such as a bank acting as
an escrow agent or, as in this case, a brokerage company holding shares in street name
for an account holder, to "deposit" the assets with the court to let the court sort out what's
going on and decide what to do with the shares or the money. The usual situation is when
an escrow agent is holding funds that both sides are claiming belong to them and, rather
than try to figure out who's right by itself, the escrow agent throws up its hands,
interpleads the money with the court and asks the judge to figure it out.
Not knowing what's going on, I would surmise that plaintiff tried to get a TRO on Friday on
very short notice to stop Mann from trading and the parties settled before the hearing on
the TRO. The case will not go away until the court decides on the merits in the
interpleader action. The order here memorializes a settlement between the parties that
basically says I won't trade so long as the company doesn't do anything that will screw me.
It was drafted by the lawyers and signed by the judge, who was probably relieved that he
didn't have to hear this thing Friday afternoon when he was planning to be on the golf
course. Then, the "innocent" defendants (Oxford and Canaccord) will initiate an
interpleader action and let the court decide how this should end up.
So, as many of us guessed last week: nothing happened. The case still has to go to trial. If there ever actually is a trial. Do shareholders REALLY want Mikey to waste their money in these idiotic pursuits?
And what's happened to the Stooges? Passed out on their tequila and rum? Poor babies.
As the unlamented bmart would have said: Game Over. |
