With final implementation of Sarbanes Oxley scheduled to occur this year, many small public companies should be thinking seriously about how to get private.
For some, simply "going dark" is the right strategy. For those with too many shareholders to go dark, a traditional going private transaction is required.
In virtually every transaction to go private, there is a risk of a lawsuit from shareholders who don't like the outcome. There are several keys that management must apply when executing the strategy both to fundamentally assure that shareholders get treated fairly and to reduce the risk of a lawsuit.
By seeking third-party help from legal and financial advisors, a company can fairly determine and establish a fair price for a transaction. The process includes more hurdles than I can cover here, but includes a third party valuation and fairness opinion.
