Suchergebnisse

Appraisal rights are codified by section 262 of the Delaware General Corporation Law ("DGCL"), which grants dissenting target shareholders in a merger the right to seek judicially determined fair value for their shares.' Appraisal rights therefore aim to protect dissenting shareholders from majority expropriation. 2 However, a new class of shareholders has emerged, testing the bounds of this remedy. "Appraisal arbitrageurs" are hedge funds who seek to exploit the once seldom- used appraisal remedy by buying target company stock after the announcement of the merger solely to pursue appraisal. These appraisal arbitrageurs have fueled the ongoing resurgence of appraisal litigation, sparking debate among corporate law practitioners and academics, many of whom condemn the investment strategy. Powerful opponents argue that appraisal arbitrage creates significant transaction costs for merger parties by extracting rents from target shareholders and creating deal uncertainty. Moreover, appraisal arbitrage has sparked a close look at Delaware courts' methodology in appraisal proceedings, exposing inconsistencies in valuing companies and revealing the judiciary's inappropriate legislative role. Accordingly, the backlash against appraisal arbitrage has not only uncovered a need This Note proposes reforming Delaware's appraisal statute to curb appraisal arbitrage and ensure certainty in appraisal proceedings, upholding the purpose of the appraisal remedy and addressing practical concerns. Part I reviews Delaware's appraisal statute and its related practical considerations, evaluates the economic incentives surrounding appraisal arbitrage, and chronicles the anti-arbitrage call for legislative reform. Part II analyzes specific aspects of the appraisal statute and its attendant judicial application in context with intended policy goals and underlying economic principles. It suggests the market out exception is unnecessary for disinterested mergers and critiques how the appraisal statute and its judicial interpretation promote ...

Purpose– The purpose of this paper is to examine the evolution of a student organic garden at a large public university, as an example of student initiatives that promote both university sustainability and student-focused sustainability education on campus.Design/methodology/approach– The authors conducted quantitative and qualitative analysis to document the evolution of the university's Local Organic Gardening Initiative of Carbondale (LOGIC), which is the student-initiated and -operated organic garden at Southern Illinois University.Findings– The student organic garden evolved in three stages, each of which had specific goals and accomplishments. Stage I (establishment): students in Geography courses took action to get the garden established; key components included funds from a sustainability scholarship and student-initiated camps Green Fund, dedicated undergraduate students, negotiating campus bureaucracy and motivating broad support. Stage II (evolution): a high tunnel was added to the original raised beds garden, a graduate assistant position was filled to manage the garden, additional funds were secured, a permaculture demonstration site was added, the volunteer base was established and LOGIC began being included in campus and community events. Stage III (future) challenges include: consistent leadership, long-term funding, guarantee of land availability, student graduation/turnover and increasing student involvement.Originality/value– This paper provides a longitudinal perspective on the evolution of student-led sustainability efforts which require progressive, inclusive action from multiple stakeholders across campus and in the community. Several replicable practices include student leadership in sustainability initiatives, actions for promoting local food in the university structure and methods of negotiating complex institutional settings.

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to articulate a theory which connects social stratification processes to the international problem of human trafficking for sex and labor purposes.Design/methodology/approachThe paper develops a social politics theory to connect concepts from social stratification to the study of human trafficking. It draws on data provided by the US Department of Health and Human Services' Rescue and Restore program for trafficked victims to illustrate how traffickers move victims trans‐nationally. It cites sources from Australia and Sweden to show how national laws and policies regarding prostitution can contribute to or discourage human trafficking for sex and labor purposes.FindingsThe social politics theory is a theoretical idea based on observations of how social, political, legal, and economic changes within "Weak" and "Failing" states create an environment conducive to human trafficking for sex and labor purposes as well as other forms of injustices.Originality/valueThe social politics theory was created to acknowledge the influence of extraneous combined socio‐political and socio‐economic forces existing in modern societies.

Purpose. Assess whether an insurer-provided Web-based wellness program results in cost and utilization improvements. Design. Quasi-experimental, pre-post, treatment-comparison design. Variables of interest were participation rates; medical, professional, and pharmacy expenditures; inpatient admissions; emergency room visits; and preventive service utilization. Setting. Six hundred forty-three employer-based wellness programs in Pennsylvania. Subjects. Forty-seven employers engaged in the Web-based wellness program and 596 employers who were not engaged. The engaged employer group included 10,463 wellness participants; an equal number of matched nonparticipant employees were identified from employers who were not engaged. Intervention. Web-based wellness program features were added to an on-site program in 2004. The program was followed through 2007. Measures. Outcomes were calculated using health insurance enrollment and claims history. Analysis. Participating employees were compared to nonparticipants using generalized linear mixed models to study changes in costs and utilization. Results. During the 2003 baseline year, engaged employers had greater costs, greater chronic disease prevalence, and greater hospitalization. Costs of program participants showed a lower rate of increase in 2004, and then dropped below those of the nonparticipants for the duration of the study. Between 2003 and 2007, the increase in medical expenditures of the participant group was significantly less than that of the nonparticipant group (31% vs. 46%, p < .01). In addition, the participant group showed a lower increase in professional service expenditures (p = .02) and greater utilization of preventive services (p < .01). Conclusions. Web-based insurer-provided wellness programs may decrease health care costs and encourage preventive service utilization. (Am J Health Promot 2011;25[4]:272–280.)

We describe a large-scale linear programming model for optimizing strategic (intercontinental) airlift capability. The model routes cargo and passengers through a specified transportation network with a given fleet of aircraft subject to many physical and policy constraints. The time-dynamic model captures a significant number of the important aspects of an airlift system in a large-scale military deployment, including aerial refueling, tactical (intracontinental) aircraft shuttles, and constraints based on crew availability. The model is designed to provide insight into issues associated with designing and operating an airlift system. We describe analyses for the U.S. Air Force system concerning fleet modernization and concerning the allocation of resources that affect the processing capacity of airfields. ; Air Force Studies and Analyses Agency

PurposeThe pursuit of equality and valuing of diversity are central tenets of much organisational thinking and public policy development. However, in this current age of austerity we are witnessing a number of existing and proposed "fairness initiatives" feeling the sharp blade of a cost‐cutting axe. This paper is a reflexive response that aims to examine a piece of action research in the field of industrial relations. It aims to take the professional UK association, the British Universities Industrial Relations Association (BUIRA), as a case study and consider how issues of equality and diversity have been viewed by the organisation both in theory and practice. Using a framework which acknowledges the need for multiple levels of analysis (macro, meso and micro) and which argues for an intersectional approach, the paper seeks to detail the measures adopted by BUIRA so as to augment its organisational responsiveness to various equality and diversity concerns. It also provides an insight into how the authors, as equality and diversity academics, reflected on the process of creating policy through their own research activities. A further aim of the paper is to highlight the scope and character of equality and diversity initiatives undertaken by BUIRA, and to discuss some of their implications for its membership – both now and in the future.Design/methodology/approachWhat began as a simple policy piece of research developed into a multi‐method, quantitative and qualitative, action‐based project. It also became a reflexive study of how and by what methods research is conducted. A quantitative and qualitative survey of BUIRA members was followed with interviews with past‐presidents of the organisation. Historical data in the form of a comprehensive 2010 retrospective on BUIRA were also consulted.FindingsThe authors' empirical material was analysed with reference to a theoretical framework that acknowledges the importance of intersectionality at all levels of analysis. The study's findings are discussed in relation to macro, meso and micro influences and reference is made to how these three levels intersect in examining views and perceptions in relation to equality and diversity within BUIRA. The main findings are that while BUIRA as an association has acted to combat perceptions that it is dominated by older White men who prioritise traditional elements of industrial relations (IR), this view still persists for some of the membership. The membership survey indicated that it was female, younger or less established academics in particular who held this view, suggesting that in challenging inequalities within the IR academic community BUIRA may still have a way to go.Practical implicationsA key implication is that representative organisations such as professional associations need to consider equality and diversity aspects that reflect the membership they serve. This has been acknowledged as fundamental in both workplaces and trade unions and now requires similar commitment from professional associations. Of course, the scope and character of initiatives are also context‐sensitive, as reflected by non‐linear progress in equality initiatives undertaken by these and other organisations.Originality/valueThe research offers an analysis of equality and diversity within a professional association which is an under researched area.