Steven Davidoff Solomon

Frank and Steven’s excellent corporate-raiding adventure

Steven Davidoff Solomon co-writes for The Atlantic, May 2017

What did Bielli think about selling the company? … He said that the benefits of being public outweighed the costs.. … The fact is … Bielli is probably right. Because so many investors are passive today, most CEOs can relax, even if their performance is mediocre. We drove away discouraged. The company had enormous potential. But realizing its value seemed impracticable.

A dearth of I.P.O.s, but it’s not the fault of red tape

Steven Davidoff Solomon writes for The New York Times, March 28, 2017

The confirmation hearing last week for Jay Clayton, who has been nominated to head the Securities and Exchange Commission, focused on the continued sluggishness of the market for initial public offerings. Senators pushed the nominee to do something, anything, to revive it.

The problem is that there is no magic wand — including deregulation — that can fix the decline.

Behind the congressional stage, a legal drama unfolds

Steven Davidoff Solomon cited by Berkeley Daily Planet, March 26, 2017

“The economy is much bigger and more complex than it was 200 years ago. A large and diverse economy needs regulation. And while the Trump administration has promised to reduce the bureaucracy as many presidents have before, it is hard to see the modern economy running without some degree of regulation, whether it concerns the security of banks or the safety of food and drugs.”

Should agencies decide law? Doctrine may be tested at Gorsuch hearing

Steven Davidoff Solomon writes for The New York Times, March 14, 2017

The doctrine is now in the spotlight because one of its most prominent critics is none other than Judge Gorsuch.

His view is very different from that of the conservative giant he would replace on the bench, Justice Antonin Scalia, who died last year. Justice Scalia loved Chevron deference…. Judge Gorsuch, however, came out swinging against the doctrine in an opinion last year on the grounds that it gave too much power to federal agencies.

The case for tenured voting

Steven Davidoff Solomon quoted by TechCrunch, March 10, 2017

The challenge, says Steven Davidoff Solomon … is that “it takes time and you need a first mover.” While the structure would “motivate institutional shareholders by rewarding them,” tech companies can “be lemmings,” says Solomon. Just like Google opened the “floodgates” for dual-class voting structures, he notes, another breakout company would need to set the direction with tenured voting.