Three Federal Courts Dismiss Lawsuits Against Chevedden, Citing Lack of Subject Matter Jurisdiction
This proxy season, rather than following the traditional route of seeking no-action relief from the Securities and Exchange Commission (or, in one instance, after receiving a no-action denial), at least four companies have filed lawsuits against activist investor John Chevedden, in each case requesting declaratory judgment that the company may properly exclude Chevedden’s proposed shareholder resolution from the proxy materials for its 2014 annual meeting. While companies have enjoyed judicial victories against Chevedden in the recent past (including during the current proxy season), this month, for the first time, three federal courts dismissed actions against Chevedden, citing lack of subject matter jurisdiction.