Negotiation Assistance

JME has assisted clients to negotiate amicable settlements and corporate reorganizations. Many of these projects involve people and businesses that were acquired during the so-called “Internet Boom” of the late 20th century.

When the stock of publicly-traded Internet companies crashed after the Boom, companies that were acquired by those publicly-traded companies as part of a grand Internet-based business scheme often found that headquarters no longer was interested in them. Executives in the acquired companies, who had been compensated primarily with stock of the acquiring company, found their stock to be worth only a small fraction of its value at the time they agreed to be acquired. The publicly traded companies were left with investments and debts in companies whose business model no longer interested them. The executives who had built up the acquired companies found that they had sold their independence for far too little. Both sides were unhappy.

When corporate headquarters and the acquired division are willing to negotiate a settlement, and wish to part on good terms, JME has a role before the lawyers are called in. For some clients, JME has been able to negotiate a roll-back to the days prior to the acquisition, the old company being spun off with the executive as owner once more. In other situations, when it was no longer possible to go back to pre-acquisition days, JME has negotiated settlements with key executives that allow them to move on with their lives.