On 5 June 2024, as part of this year’s successful edition of the London International Disputes Week (LIDW), the DIS co-hosted an event with Ashurst on 'International and German Perspectives on Post-M&A Disputes', as supporter and member of the LIDW.
After a welcome at Ashurst’s office in London and a brief introduction to the topic by Arne Fuchs, LL.M. (GWU), Dr. Judith Sawang, as member of the DIS Advisory Board, introduced the DIS and spoke about the important role that post-M&A disputes play in the DIS’ case docket. Jan K. Schäfer, a member of the DIS Board, then led a panel discussion of experienced experts.
Our four panellists Mikal Brøndmo from Oslo, Alvaro López de Argumedo Piñeiro from Madrid, Pirkka-Marja Põldvere from Tallinn and Judith Sawang from Frankfurt discussed four practical aspects of M&A disputes that pose procedural challenges irrespective of the applicable substantive law, namely the interplay of experts and arbitrators, mixing and matching contractual and tort claims, information access after closing and construing detailed SPAs. The discussion showed how complex these issues can be, how creative solutions can provide fair procedural approaches and what drafting tricks can help to pre-empt disputes.
Overall, the event provided for a lively debate among the panellists and the audience. The event was part of a series of exchanges that the DIS organizes in the context of arbitration days and weeks. Many thanks to all participants and speakers for their interest and commitment
Jan K. Schäfer