Delaware: Open for Business BY LARRY NAGENGAST
Senior Strategists Doug Gramiak and Lisa Goodman with partner Tim Houseal
THERE’S LITTLE ARGUMENT that Delaware’s Court of Chancery stands tall as the nation’s premier forum for resolving corporate equity disputes, but Chancery is hardly the sole reason businesses large and small choose the First State as their legal domicile. Delaware’s legislative and executive branches of government deserve some credit too. So does Superior Court, with its 5-year-old Complex Commercial Litigation Division. And don’t forget the federal District and Bankruptcy courts, which round out an impressive lineup of businessfriendly assets. Delaware’s courts have characteristics that businesses appreciate. “They’re fair, efficient and predictable,” says Tim Houseal, a partner in the DELAWARE BUSINESS | Ma y / Ju ne 2016
Wilmington law firm of Young Conaway Stargatt & Taylor, and that’s why the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and others that evaluate judicial systems consistently place Delaware at the top. Commercial cases in which more than $1 million is in dispute can qualify for the complex litigation docket, which gives them a priority status on the calendar of the judge handling the case. Once the judge sets the schedule for conferences and the trial, the parties can’t request delays, so the case should be resolved more promptly than similar cases on the court’s regular docket. Delaware’s U.S. District Court is highly regarded for its handling of intellectual property cases. “One reason technology, pharmaceutical and 41