Shareholder Rights & Fiduciary Duties

Demand Corporate Accountability

Robbins LLP is committed to the principle that the officers and directors of publicly traded corporations should be held accountable to the owners of the enterprise – the shareholders. When poor decisions, violations of corporate policies, and blatant misconduct by officers and directors cause the value of a company’s stock to decline, shareholders can seek justice.


Robbins LLP assists individual and institutional shareholders who demand corporate accountability, integrity, and honesty from their corporate executives by taking aggressive legal action against company insiders, such as the executive officers, directors or board members, who harmed the corporation through their wrongdoing. Through legal action asserting shareholders’ rights, a single shareholder can act on the company’s behalf to remedy the harm caused to shareholders, strengthen and protect the company from future wrongdoing, and improve shareholder confidence in the company’s leadership.


What Is A Shareholder Derivative Action?

A shareholder derivative action is a lawsuit brought by a shareholder or group of shareholders for the benefit of a corporation that challenges the breaches of fiduciary duty to shareholders by officers and directors of the corporation. Through this type of legal action, investors can hold wrongdoers accountable. A successful lawsuit can restore wholeness to a company, while also improving its governance practices and preventing repeat offenses.

Examples of remedies obtainable through derivative actions are:

  • Reforms to corporate governance
  • Prevention of future similar fiduciary misconduct
  • Financial compensation to the company
  • Removal of officers and directors who injured a corporation through their misconduct
  • Correction of wrongfully obtained gains

What Is A Corporate Merger And Acquisition Class Action?

Shareholders are eligible to bring class action lawsuits over unfair transactions, such as proposed acquisitions or mergers, leveraged buyouts, and transitions to private ownership. These transactions may be unfair in substance or procedure. A successful class action lawsuit verifies whether a proposed transaction is, in fact, in the best interests of shareholders and can correct unfair aspects of the transaction. Class actions over such transactions can:

  • Safeguard shareholders’ rights to receive full and fair disclosure of material information before they vote to approve or reject a proposal
  • Remove obstacles to a fair sales process
  • Increase the value of the deal

Results That Matter

Our services on behalf of shareholders have a proven track record of protecting and enhancing shareholder rights and value, holding directors and officers accountable for corporate misconduct, and improving corporate governance at companies across the country. Our firm’s experienced attorneys include former federal prosecutors, defense counsel from top corporate law firms, in-house counsel from leading financial institutions, and career shareholder rights litigators. Our attorneys have litigated in almost every state in the country and are not intimidated by power financial players or an uphill battle. We have:

  • Secured several of the largest monetary recoveries in the history of shareholder derivative litigation, including $70 million on behalf of Cardinal Health, Inc., $60 million on behalf of Community Health Systems, Inc., and $40 million on behalf of Sears Holdings Corporation
  • Obtained $500 million in additional consideration to Unocal’s stockholders as part of an increased bid of $17.4 billion by Chevron Corp. and secured a $16 million settlement fund for PETCO Animal Supplies, Inc. stockholders through a class action relating to the insiders and directors’ attempt to sell the company at an unfairly low price to its own affiliates in a going-private transaction
  • Helped Fortune 1000 companies pursue litigation against those insiders who harmed them and fixed corporate governance structures to prevent future wrongdoing
  • Saved companies from bankruptcy and preserved the equity interests of shareholders

No-Cost Representation

What does it cost to bring a shareholder derivative action or corporate merger and acquisition class action? Nothing. Robbins LLP represents shareholders on a contingency fee basis, meaning we advance all attorneys’ fees and expenses incurred by the litigation. If we are successful in obtaining a monetary recovery or substantial nonmonetary benefit for the corporation or the shareholders we represent, we will seek to have the court approve our fee request, which will be paid by the corporate defendants and/or their insurance carriers. Robbins LLP never seeks reimbursement for attorneys’ fees or costs directly from our shareholder clients.

Were Your Investments Harmed Due To A Breach Of Fiduciary Duty?

Were your investments harmed due to breach of fiduciary duty? Corporate executives have a fiduciary duty to the shareholders of a corporation. If they breach those duties, shareholders can protect their rights through legal action. Call our office at 1-800-350-6003 or contact us using our online form.

Having information at your fingertips is easier than ever. Enroll in Robbins LLP’s free investment monitoring service, Stock Watch, for notifications of corporate misconduct impacting the value of your investments, advice on how to hold corporate officers and directors accountable for their misconduct, and to receive information about class action settlements.