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Kevin LaCroix

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Kevin M. LaCroix is an attorney and Executive Vice President, RT ProExec, a division of RT Specialty. RT ProExec is an insurance intermediary focused exclusively on management liability issues.

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As we have previously noted (most recently, here), geopolitical issues represent an increasingly important source of D&O risk. A lawsuit filed late last week against the fuel cell and power generation firm Bloom Energy highlights this developing source of risk. In the new complaint, a plaintiff shareholder alleges that the company understated its supply chain exposure to China and understated the extent of its reliance on China for a specific rare earth element, scandium. The company’s share price declined after a short seller’s media outlet published a report claiming that the company was, in fact, reliant on Chinese scandium. A copy of the new complaint against Bloom Energy can be found here.

Continue Reading Geopolitical Issues Lead to Securities Suit Against Fuel Cell Company
Ben Dubin

In the following guest post, Ben Dubin, Managing Memberof VC Expert Services, LLC, examines Vice Chancellor Laster’s May 2026 opinion in the Zync v. Porsche case, a decision that highlights the legal and D&O insurance risks for investor-appointed directors and their sponsoring venture firms, particularly when directors are accused of acting as agents of the investor rather than exercising independent fiduciary judgment on behalf of the company. This post is the second of two guest post from Ben discussing D&O risks associated with venture capital board seats. Ben’s prior post on the topic can be found here. We would like to thank Ben for allowing us to publish his articles as guest posts on this site. Here is Ben’s article.

Continue Reading Guest Post: Zync v. Porsche and the D&O Risks of VC Board Seats

In its July 29, 2026, report on first half securities class action lawsuit filings (here), Cornerstone Research explained the increased levels of 1H26 securities suit filings as being due in significant part to “a surge in litigation involving artificial intelligence-related claims .” In the latest example of this type of AI-related securities litigation, as well as an example of the kinds of allegations that can lead to these kinds of suits, late last week a plaintiff shareholder sued Israeli cloud web development platform company Wix.com, alleging the company had overstated its AI-related capabilities and prospects, while understating its AI-related costs. A copy of the July 24, 2026 complaint can be found here.

Continue Reading AI-Related Securities Suit Hits Israeli Web Development Platform

Many of us are still trying to get comfortable with the idea of autonomous vehicles. Turns out, we may soon need to get comfortable with the idea of autonomous companies.

A first-of-its-kind draft bill has been proposed to the Delaware legislature that would allow the creation of an Artificial Intelligence Company (AIC), a form of legal personhood for an entity that operates through an AI agent with no human at the controls, and with the same kind of limited liability for the entity’s owners as for a more traditional company.  

As discussed below, the proposed new AIC corporate form raises some very interesting questions. It also arguably represents an entirely new challenge for the D&O insurance industry.

Continue Reading Brave New World: Delaware’s Proposed New “Artificial Intelligence Company”

The fourth episode of The D&O Diary Podcast Series, discussing the D&O liability and insurance implications of the current Trump administration’s tariff policies, is now live.

The D&O Diary has closely followed the rapidly evolving tariff environment and the growing range of litigation and liability issues arising from it. Building on our prior posts examining tariff-related securities litigation, refund litigation, and emerging corporate disclosure challenges, we discuss in this latest episode how tariffs have become a D&O risk for both public and private companies.

Continue Reading The D&O Diary Podcast Series – Episode 4: Tariffs, Geopolitics, and D&O Risk

Both the number of securities class action lawsuit filings and the number and total value of securities lawsuit settlements during the first half of 2026 were on track for the highest annual levels in several years, according to reports published this week by National Economic Research Associates (NERA) and Cornerstone Research, respectively. The NERA report, entitled “Recent Trends in Securities Class Action Litigation: H1 2026 Update,” can be found here. The Cornerstone Research report, entitled “Securities Class Action Settlements,” can be found here. The D&O Diary’s own analysis of the securities suit filings in the year’s first six months can be found here.

Continue Reading Securities Suit Filings and Settlement Numbers and Values Increased in 1H26
Ben Dubin

In the following guest post, Ben Dubin, Managing Member of VC Expert Services LLC, discusses Delaware Vice Chancellor Laster’s January 29, 2026 opinion in the Calumet Capital Partners case. This article, which is the first of two discussing recent Delaware decisions regarding VC firm’s representative’s service on the firm’s portfolio company boards, argues that the Calumet decision creates greater litigation risk for venture capital firms whose employees or partners serve as board designees, because courts may more readily infer that the investor knowingly participated in a fiduciary breach when its own representative is involved. The author’s companion article to this one will be published on this site next week. Our thanks to Ben for allowing us to publish his article on our site. Here is Ben’s article.

Continue Reading Guest Post: Calumet and VC Board Designee Risk
Evan Bundschuh
Burkhard Fassbach

In the following guest post, Evan Bundschuh and Burkhard Fassbach share and analyze their research into the geopolitics-related Form 10-K disclosures of 26 large-cap U.S.-listed public companies, as well as 52 small-cap and mid-cap companies, in order to assess the level and significance of public companies’ disclosure statements pertaining to geopolitics. Evan is Vice President at GB&A, a retail insurance brokerage in New York, and Burkhard is a D&O lawyer in private practice in Germany. My thanks to Evan and Burkhard for allowing us to publish their article on this site. Here is their article.

Continue Reading Guest Post: Geopolitical Risk Mapping in the 2025 Filing Season

As readers know, in May, the SEC proposed a rule that would provide companies currently subject to the agency’s quarterly reporting requirements with the option to instead file interim reports semiannually. Following the agency’s announcement of the proposed rule, the proposal has been subject to public comment. The comment period is now closed, although apparently some late filed comments are still being made public. What does the commentary show?  The filed comments show that while public reaction to the proposal has varied, the filed comments were almost exclusively negative.

Continue Reading Commentators Respond to SEC’s Semiannual Reporting Proposal
John McCarrick

Those who follow Directors’ and Officers’ indemnification and advancement issues know that there are a host of recurring questions surrounding executives’ advancement rights, including whether there are duration or amount limits on a company’s advancement obligations. In the following guest post, John McCarrick, a partner at the Robinson & Cole law firm in New York, takes a look at these issues in the context of recent high-profile dispute involving executives at JPMorgan. Our thanks to John for allowing us to publish his article guest post on this site. Here is John’s article.

Continue Reading Guest Post: When D&O Advancement Becomes a Blank Check