Steven Davidoff Solomon writes for The New York Times, June 11, 2015

These days, the pharmaceutical company Mylan is both the hunter and the hunted. The question is whether Mylan’s defense against a takeover attempt will run afoul of United States market rules and whether those rules will be enforced.

Steven Davidoff Solomon writes for The New York Times, June 10, 2015

J. Crew, Michelle Obama’s sometime clothing retailer, is yet another struggling private equity buyout. J. Crew’s owners, TPG Capital and Leonard Green & Partners, are stuck, tied to the bargain they struck with the company’s chief executive, Millard S. Drexler. Call it the “great man” problem.

Steven Davidoff Solomon writes for The New York Times, May 26, 2015

This would all be just another story of an entrenched chief executive who treats the company as his own playground were Gamco not an asset manager, which is a fiduciary to the ordinary people who give Gamco money to invest. Not only is it an asset manager, it is an active one, pressing companies to improve their corporate governance. In other words, Gamco appears to be a shareholder advocate for everyone but itself.

Steven Davidoff Solomon writes for The New York Times, May 19, 2015

While it may seem like the cure for short-termism, high-vote shares may instead do something else, giving power to a small group of shareholders with odd interests. And whether they exercise that power vengefully or selfishly is an unknown. C’ést la vie.

Steven Davidoff Solomon writes for The New York Times, May 13, 2015

In deal-making, “winning” a proxy contest may not be the triumphant victory that one thinks it could be. For future shareholder activist battles, there are lessons in the way DuPont and Trian both won and lost.

Steven Davidoff Solomon writes for The New York Times, May 12, 2015

Placement agents have been maligned, banned and even imprisoned. And yet, pension funds continue to use them. Despite various scandals, however, a new study finds that the better agents in the business just might provide value.

Steven Davidoff Solomon writes for The New York Times, May 8, 2015

It was not unexpected that Mylan would react negatively to Teva’s approach. Neither company has ever gotten along particularly well. But in terms of a negative response, Mylan’s is an 11 on a scale of one to 10.

Steven Davidoff Solomon writes for The New York Times, May 5, 2015

Celebrity V.C.s are a sign of a bubbling market. But they are also a sign that perhaps the skill-set most valued in Silicon Valley is not what you know, but who. It’s a skill that may work for now, but is something that dooms Silicon Valley to a cycle of booms and busts.

Steven Davidoff Solomon writes for The New York Times, May 1, 2015

If there is no deal, shareholders are going to have to face those thorny questions: How do they measure DuPont’s performance — starting from 2007 or 2008? Include the new health and nutrition business or not? The fate of a $60 billion company may hinge on these answers.

Steven Davidoff Solomon writes for The New York Times, April 24, 2015

Teva’s unsolicited $40 billion bid for the drug maker Mylan and Mylan’s own unsolicited offer for the rival Perrigo are sweet revenge for the United States taxpayer. The reason is their flight from the United States in tax inversions has made both more exposed to hostile takeovers.