Fed. Sec. L. Rep. P 94,196 Corenco Corporation v. Schiavone & Sons, Inc., and Chester K. Twiss, Additional to Counterclaim

488 F.2d 207
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Second Circuit
DecidedOctober 26, 1973
Docket331, 521, Dockets 73-2216, 73-2286
StatusPublished
Cited by54 cases

This text of 488 F.2d 207 (Fed. Sec. L. Rep. P 94,196 Corenco Corporation v. Schiavone & Sons, Inc., and Chester K. Twiss, Additional to Counterclaim) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Fed. Sec. L. Rep. P 94,196 Corenco Corporation v. Schiavone & Sons, Inc., and Chester K. Twiss, Additional to Counterclaim, 488 F.2d 207 (2d Cir. 1973).

Opinion

MANSFIELD, Circuit Judge:

A familiar defensive tactic increasingly used by target companies to delay or thwart a take-over bid made by a tender *210 offeror has been the institution of a lawsuit against the offeror charging violation of the federal antitrust laws or non-disclosure of material information in violation of the Williams Act, Pub.L. 90-439, 82 Stat. 454, 15 U.S.C. §§ 78m(d), (e), 78n(d)-(f). These actions have presented us with difficult and unusual questions. See, e. g., Gulf & Western Industries, Inc. v. Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Co., 476 F.2d 687 (2d Cir. 1973); Sonesta International Hotels Corp. v. Wellington Associates, 483 F.2d 247 (2d Cir.1973); SEC v. Bangor Punta Corp., 480 F.2d 341 (2d Cir. 1973). See generally E. Aranow & H. Einhorn, Tender Offers for Corporate Control (1973). The present case is no exception. It is novel in two respects. First, the district court, facing a question of first impression, held that the tender offeror, in this case a closely held company, should disclose financial data as to its own past operations, since this information might aid those solicited in deciding whether to tender or withhold their shares. Secondly, the principal appeal is not by the offeror, which has decided to abide by this aspect of the district court’s decision, but by the target company, Corenco Corp., after it has successfully obtained a permanent injunction based on the offeror’s failure to disclose its financial operations. Coren-co appeals from a modification of that judgment which would permit the offeror to cure the deficiency by making the required disclosure to the offerees and giving them a right of withdrawal.

The original judgment entered on August 9, 1973, 362 F.Supp. 939, in favor of Corenco, the target company, after a trial before Judge Ward in the Southern District of New York, permanently enjoined Schiavone & Sons, Inc. (“Schia-vone”), its parent company, Michael Schiavone & Sons, Inc. (“Michael Schia-vone”), and Bear Stearns & Co., and all persons acting on their behalf (herein collectively referred to as “the Schiavone defendants”) from (a) soliciting the tender of any shares of stock of Coren-co, (b) acquiring any Corenco shares as a result of the tender offer, (c) further soliciting the proxies of holders of Cor-enco common stock, (d) voting any shares of Corenco common stock or proxies, (e) otherwise utilizing any such stock or shares of Corenco as a means of gaining control of Corenco “unless and until the Schiavone defendants make full disclosure of financial information about Schiavone and Michael Schiavone.” The modification relieved the Schiavone defendants from the injunctive provisions of the order and judgment and permitted them to continue soliciting the tender of Corenco shares upon their filing with the Securities Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) an amendment (containing financial statements for Schia-vone and Michael Schiavone) to Schia-vone’s Schedule 13D statement and upon their distribution of an “Extended and Amended Offer to Purchase.”

Corenco argues that the modification permitting the tender offer to proceed upon the filing of a curative amendment will encourage minimal disclosure by other tender offerors in the future and that it was based on the district court’s mistaken belief that the Schiavone defendants intended to disclose as much financial information as they had furnished to the First Pennsylvania Banking & Trust Co. (“First Pennsylvania”) in securing a loan to finance the tender offer.

Both Corenco and the Schiavone defendants also appeal from those portions of the district court’s judgment of August 9, 1973, which dismissed certain of their various other claims and counterclaims. 1 Corenco alleges several other violations (besides the failure to *211 disclose financial information about Schiavone and Michael Schiavone) of §§ 14(d) and 14(e) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (“the Exchange Act”), 15 U.S.C. §§ 78n(d) and 78n(e), and claims that prior to the public tender offer the Schiavone defendants together with Reed Rubin, a broker, conspired in violation of § 13(d) of the Exchange Act, 15 U.S.C. § 78m(d), to acquire or hold together more than 5% of Corenco’s stock without making the required filings. The Schiavone defendants counterclaim that the Corenco management itself violated § 13(d) of the Exchange Act by failing to file a Schedule 13D statement while acting in concert to defeat Schiavone’s offer.

For reasons hereinafter stated we hold that the district court acted well within its discretion in modifying its previous order and in permitting the tender offer to proceed upon the filing of a curative amendment. However, because we believe that the district court may have believed that the Schiavone defendants intended to disclose all of the financial information about themselves that they had previously furnished to First Pennsylvania, we remand for a determination by the district court as to whether the disclosure of Schiavone financial information as to earlier years should be required. In all other respects we affirm the modified judgment of the district court.

Although Corenco has challenged at length some of Judge Ward’s findings of fact as contrary to the weight of the evidence, we are here governed by the “clearly erroneous” standard. Rule 52(a), F.R.Civ.P.; United States v. National Association of Real Estate Boards, 339 U.S. 485, 70 S.Ct. 711, 94 L.Ed. 1007 (1950). Under that standard the essential facts appear to be as follows. From time to time during and prior to 1972 Corenco, a publicly held corporation organized under Maine laws and engaged in production of tallow, fertilizers, shortening and industrial oils, offered a “finders fee” to Reed Rubin, a broker employed by Singer & Mackie, Inc., payable upon his finding any company successfully acquired by Corenco. In October, 1972, Rubin arranged a meeting between Corenco representatives and Joel Schiavone, vice-president of Michael Schiavone and president of Schiavone for the purpose of exploring preliminarily a possible acquisition of Schiavone by Corenco. Both Michael Schiavone and its subsidiary, Schiavone, are closely held corporations engaged in the scrap metals business. Although the companies and their industries were discussed generally at this meeting, no concrete proposal or plan emerged for a merger with or an acquisition by Corenco of the Schiavone companies. Thereafter discussions periodically took place between some or all of the representatives of both sides until on April 12, 1973, negotiations were terminated.

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Bluebook (online)
488 F.2d 207, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/fed-sec-l-rep-p-94196-corenco-corporation-v-schiavone-sons-inc-ca2-1973.