News & Events

The Firm recently obtained an important victory on behalf of a Goldman Sachs private equity fund that is buying USI Holdings, Corp., the ninth largest insurance broker in the nation in a transaction valued at $1.4 billion. The Lerach Coughlin firm filed an action on behalf of a shareholder in the New York Supreme Court for Westchester County and sought a preliminary injunction blocking the shareholder vote. The plaintiff alleged that the Company's directors had breached their fiduciary duties in approving the sale and describing the transaction in the proxy statement. In a lengthy decision, the Court held that the plaintiff had failed to satisfy any of the requirements for an injunction: the plaintiff did not face a risk of irreparable harm, the balance of the equities weighed against an injunction, and the plaintiff had not established a likelihood of success on the merits. USI's shareholders subsequently approved the sale.

The Simpson Thacher team consisted of Michael Chepiga, David Elbaum, Bill Regan, Charlie Divine and Jason Friedman. The firm is also representing Goldman Sachs in arranging the financing for the transaction.