Apparently I missed this little morsel of goodness back in March:Vice Chancellor Leo E. Strine Jr., who often presides over big deal-related cases at Delaware’s Court of Chancery, offered his opinion on [the] hot-button issue [of advisory conflicts at big investment banks].
In a panel discussion Thursday at Tulane Law School’s Corporate Law Institute, Vice Chancellor Strine suggested that a conflict-free bank is not always the best choice.
“I question bringing in a Mickey-Mouse-size bank to [represent] a go-shop,” he said on the panel. “I still err on the side of repeat players” — meaning banks that may already have an interest in a company or a deal — who “know the tricks of the game.”
A pure adviser, he suggested, can sometimes end up being a “purely ignorant adviser.”
This line of discussion brought out what is likely to be one of the most memorable quotes of the event. It was spoken by panelist Robert Kindler, vice chairman of investment banking at Morgan Stanley.
Referring to the universe of big banks such as his own, he said: “We are totally conflicted — get used to it.”
Now, I would expect a weasely little soundbite like that from Kindler, who seems to have had trouble figuring out which wing of the House of Morgan he wants to inhabit. But Strine?
So much for asking that little bugger to be on the Advisory Board of my "Mickey Mouse" advisory boutique. Piss ant.
Hat tip to DealLawyers.com for bringing this to my belated attention.
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