Lady Benjamin PD Cannon f/k/a Ben Cannon v. Romeo Systems, Inc.

Court of Chancery of Delaware·Decided December 31, 2025·No. C.A. No. 2021-0717-PAF·Published

Opinion

IN THE COURT OF CHANCERY OF THE STATE OF DELAWARE

LADY BENJAMIN PD CANNON ) f/k/a Ben Cannon, ) ) Plaintiff, ) ) v. ) C.A. No. 2021-0171-PAF ) ROMEO SYSTEMS, INC., a ) Delaware Corporation, ROMEO ) POWER, INC., a Delaware ) Corporation, and MICHAEL ) PATTERSON, ) ) Defendants. )

ORDER ADDRESSING DEFENDANT’S MOTION TO STAY PENDING APPEAL

WHEREAS:1

A. Defendant Michael Patterson has moved to stay execution of the court’s

November 17, 2025 Judgment and Final Order (the “Final Order”) pending appeal

(the “Motion”).2

1 Unless otherwise defined herein, citations to the docket in this action are in the form of Dkt. [#]. 2 Dkts. 259, 271. B. The Final Order entered post-trial judgment in favor of Lady Benjamin

Cannon (the “Plaintiff”) in the amount of $27,301,288.42, plus pre- and post-

judgment interest.3

C. On December 18, 2025, Patterson filed a notice of appeal of the Final

Order.4

D. In the Motion, Patterson offers 2,483,446 shares of Class A Common

stock (the “Shares”) of Battle Motors Holdings, Inc. (“Battle Motors”), a privately

held corporation, as security for the stay.5 Patterson asserts in the Motion that the

value of the Shares is approximately $56.5 million. Patterson bases this valuation

upon a sale of Battle Motors stock to existing investors in September 2025. Patterson

maintains that the value of the Shares is more than sufficient to satisfy the judgment

and to justify the Motion.

3 Dkt. 271 at 4. On October 28, 2025, Patterson moved for a stay of execution of the judgment pending appeal and for an interim stay pending resolution of the motion to stay. Dkts. 260, 259. On December 12, 2025, Patterson filed an emergency motion to extend his deadline to respond to Cannon’s discovery requests in aid of execution of the judgment. Dkt. 285. The court granted the motion on December 15. Dkt. 286. The practical effect of that ruling stayed execution on the judgment pending adjudication of this Motion. In any event, this Order renders the prior two motions moot. 4 Dkt. 288. 5 Battle Motors manufactures and sells garbage trucks. Dkt. 273 (Affidavit of Michael Patterson in Support of His Opening Brief in Support of His Motion for a Stay Pending Appeal, hereinafter “Patterson Original Aff.”) ¶ 4; Dkt. 273 (“Def.’s Opening Br.”) at 3. The company’s origins date back to 1947, when it was known as Crane Carrier Company. Patterson Original Aff. ¶ 4. Defendant is the Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of Battle Motors, positions that he has held since mid-2021, when Battle Motors acquired the company. Id. ¶¶ 1−4.

2 NOW, THEREFORE, the court having carefully considered the Motion, IT

IS HEREBY ORDERED, this 31st day of December, 2025, as follows:

1. Article IV, Section 24 of the Constitution of the State of Delaware and

Supreme Court Rule 32 govern stays pending appeal and the required security. Ct.

Ch. R. 62(d). Article IV, Section 24 of the Delaware Constitution provides that there

“shall be no stay of proceedings in the court below unless the appellant shall give

sufficient security to be approved by the court below or by a judge of the Supreme

Court.” Whether to grant a stay of a judgment pending appeal is a matter of this

court’s discretion. Supr. Ct. R. 32(a).

2. Prior to 1987, “courts in this state required appellants seeking to stay

the execution of a judgment to post a supersedeas bond in an amount equal to the

judgment.” Zimmerman v. Crothall, 2014 WL 257461, at *1 (Del. Ch. Jan. 23, 2014)

(citing Blackwell v. Sidwell, 126 A.2d 237 (Del. 1956)). In 1987, the Supreme Court

substantially revised the rule governing stays pending appeal. The operative rule

provides, in pertinent part:

Supersedeas bond or other security. A stay or injunction pending appeal shall be granted upon filing and approval of sufficient security. . . . The type, amount, and form of the security shall be determined in the first instance by the trial court, . . . (i) Type of security. Security for a stay . . . pending appeal shall be a supersedeas bond or other security. The trial court shall have the discretion to set a type of security other than a supersedeas bond, with the party seeking such

3 other type of security having the burden to demonstrate the sufficiency of such other type of security. (ii) Amount of security. With regard to a judgment or a portion of a judgment for a sum of money, the security shall ordinarily equal such sum of money and all costs and damages, including damages for delay. The trial court shall have the discretion to set the security at a lesser amount, with the party seeking the stay . . . pending appeal having the burden to show that a lesser amount is sufficient in the circumstances.

Supr. Ct. R. 32(c).

3. Thus, under Supreme Court Rule 32(c), “a supersedeas bond is one type

of security, but it is not the only type.” In re El Paso Pipeline P’rs, L.P. Deriv.

Litig., 2017 WL 11825097, at *2 (Del. Ch. Feb. 16, 2017).

4. Defendant does not wish to obtain a supersedeas bond because he avers

that it will cost him between $800,000 and $1,600,000, and he doubts that he could

recover that cost from Plaintiff if he prevails on appeal.6 Instead, he offers to post

illiquid shares of Battle Motors stock, which would allow him to avoid paying a

bonding agent.

5. Defendant cites no case from a Delaware court allowing a judgment

debtor to post stock in a private company as security for a stay of a multi-million-

6 Patterson Original Aff. ¶ 28−30. Defendant’s affidavit states that he “contacted three insurance companies regarding the possibility of securing a supersedeas bond” and that he “understand[s] from these communications and others that a supersedeas bond would cost me between $800,000 and $1,600,000.” Id. ¶ 27−28. The Motion and supporting papers offer no other information concerning these communications.

4 dollar money judgment pending appeal. Nevertheless, he insists that the Shares are

sufficient security to support a stay of execution. The court concludes that

Defendant’s offer of Battle Motors stock is insufficient security for a stay.

6. Defendant’s Motion and supporting papers lack sufficient credibility to

warrant a stay under these circumstances. First, Defendant’s Motion and his

supporting affidavit stated that he owned 42.11% of Battle Motors’s fully diluted

stock in a trust over which he and his spouse serve as trustees. See Patterson Original

Aff. ¶¶ 20-24; see also Def.’s Opening Br. 12 n.3 (“As of November 24, 2025,

Patterson beneficially owns 12,353,913 shares, or approximately 42.11% of Battle

Motors Holdings, Inc. on a fully diluted basis.”). But the supporting affidavit and

capitalization table state that there are 32,264,353 outstanding shares on a fully

diluted basis. Patterson Original Aff. ¶ 23; id. Ex. B. Based upon these figures,

Defendant beneficially owned 38.29% of Battle Motors stock on a fully diluted

basis, not 42.11%.7

7 Defendant averred that he is the beneficial owner of a total of 12,353,913 shares of Battle Motors Class A and Class B common stock through the trust. Id. ¶¶ 21−22; see also id. Ex. B (Battle Motors Capitalization Table as of Oct. 15, 2025). To be sure, the capitalization table submitted with Defendant’s original affidavit reflects 32,264,353 fully diluted shares and states in boldface type that “Patterson Owns approximately 42.11% of Battle 12,353,913 Shares.” Id. Ex. B.

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Lady Benjamin PD Cannon f/k/a Ben Cannon v. Romeo Systems, Inc., (Del. Ct. App. 2025).

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