January 23, 2024
Trends in #MeToo Representations
This K&L Gates alert discusses the ABA Mergers & Acquisitions Committee’s 2023 Private Target Deal Points Study. The new data points in this year’s study include “a more nuanced look at #MeToo representations.” Here’s a description of the content of these reps from the alert:
57% of all transactions analyzed in the 2023 Study included a stand-alone #MeToo representation, as compared to 37% of deals in the 2021 Study.
New nuanced data points measure whether the representation includes language regarding corrective action (5% of #MeToo representations in the 2023 data set do), settlement agreements (74% of #MeToo representations in the 2023 data set do, with 11% qualified by the knowledge of the party making the representation), or allegations of sexual harassment (all #MeToo representations in the 2023 data set do, with 37% knowledge-qualified).
The alert also highlights some general design upgrades to the study to improve usability, including gray text “for prior study data to help current year data stand out more” and new data points and correlations identified with “new data” flags.
– Meredith Ervine