Legal News

Sexy Delaware Litigation Alert: Clash of the Media Titans

By Peter Lattman

We’ve been watching from a distance as a sexy litigation battle unfolds down at the Delaware Court of Chancery between media moguls John Malone and Barry Diller. It’s so exciting, if for no other reason than that it might generate one of those classic opinions from either Chancellor Chandler or Vice Chancellor Strine. Don’t disappoint us guys!

Here’s what’s going down, courtesy of the WSJ. Barry Diller wants to break up IAC, his $7 billion e-commerce company with a fancy-pants building just up the street from Law Blog headquarters, into four pieces. Last week, IAC and Malone’s Liberty, which has a big stake in IAC, sued each other over the proposed restructuring. Click here and here for the dueling complaints.

Yesterday, Liberty went back to court, filling this complaint attempting to seize control of the company from Diller, repeatedly accusing him of “misconduct.” Credit Diller, a former Hollywood executive, with not issuing a pat response such as, “Liberty’s legal filing is without merit and we will defend the action vigorously.” Instead, he fired back. “I am beginning to think these people are insane . . . Everything they cite is hogwash.”

Liberty is represented by Baker Botts in New York and Kevin Abrams and A. Thompson Bayliss at Abrams & Laster in Wilmington. Counseling Diller are Ted Mirvis at Wachtell Lipton in New York and Kenneth Nachbar at Morris Nichols in Wilmington.

Full post as published by Law Blog - WSJ.com on January 29, 2008 (boomark / email).