I would be happy to do some research if needed but I think we all have to work out where we go from here. It is clear that minority shareholders are on their own so it really a David versus Goliath battle. WN have deep pockets and good legal minds at their disposal. We would therefore need to obtain a legal opinion at the beginning to see if there are any Legal remedies available also if we minoirty shareholders could obtain Legal Aid to fight a prolonged Legal battle.
Years ago there was a court case where the directors of a large cap such as AMP, QBE or the like recommended to shareholders not to accept a takeover offer from another company. As it turned out they should have recommended the takeover as the share price soon fell. A young shareholder with not much money and not too many shares sued the directors and won the case. The shareholder was seen as a bit of a hero but the only reason he pursued the company was that he felt that their advice was morally wrong.
Whether minority shareholders could do the same remains to be seen. It is clear the the independant shareholders should never have recommended the takeover but we need to obtain a legal opinion to determine if this is the case. There is also a few other matter that are quetsionable IMO. These are:
1. Valuation and methodology by the Independant Expert Report.
2. The three letters regarding the delisting of BRM.
3. Buying of shares by WN associates. Can this be proven.
4. Witholding of information from the market. Directors disclosure.(Rail, Opthalmia, Equity partners etc.)
5. Ophthalmia.
6. Share market manipulation.
7. Independant Directors recommendations.
and there are probably quite a few more breaches. IMO it would save a lot of time and money if we had access to a good legal mind such as good barrister to determine if there is a case to go to court. This is the only course of action left.
Do we want pursue this or simply see what happens?
New Feature Announcement!
We’re excited to introduce the DealRoom portal, now live on site, providing users with exciting access to private equity opportunities for both pre-IPO and publicly listed companies.
See full details by selecting the new menu item named 'DealRoom' on our main menu bar or click below.
Stay ahead of the market, with HotCopper.