Surf's Up at Sidley Austin: Bargain Hunters are Making Waves

Sidley Austin (you know, the top dogs defending companies from pushy shareholders) is absolutely swamped right now! The heat isn't just coming from the scorching summer sun: it's radiating from their overheating phone lines! Kai Liekefett, the sharp-witted co-chair of their shareholder activism and corporate defense practice, says a whopping eight companies have frantically called for help in just the past couple weeks. Talk about no vacation for these legal lifeguards! For context, this kind of summer activity is practically unheard of, even for Sidley - and they've been the top law firm for fending off activist shareholders for three consecutive years!

The numbers tell the whole story: Sidley crushed it with 32 company engagements in the first half of 2025, handily beating rivals Latham & Watkins and Skadden Arps - making quite the splash in the legal pool! These engagements represented shareholder stakes totaling a massive $2.3 billion! While activism campaigns globally actually dropped about 10.7% (down to 385 new campaigns), the total cash involved skyrocketed by 14.5% year-over-year to an eye-popping $40.5 billion.

January and February were insanely busy - among the busiest months ever recorded for Sidley's shareholder activism practice. Then came the market chaos. When President Trump dramatically announced his tariff hikes on April 2nd (what he dubbed "Liberation Day"), it sent markets into a tsunami. At least 20 activist campaigns immediately withdrew or settled, giving corporate America a temporary reprieve from proxy fights - like a quick dip in a cool pool on a hot day.

But here's where it gets spicy - while most folks were firing up their summer BBQs, savvy investors were cooking up something else entirely! These hot-shot investors used the market panic to snatch up discounted stocks left and right. Now they're circling companies like sharks at a beach party, armed with newfound bargaining power and getting aggressive outside the normal spring proxy season when most annual meetings happen.

Take the wild case of QXO Inc.'s $11 billion acquisition of Beacon Roofing Supply Inc., which Sidley represented. QXO initially offered about $124 per share, but Beacon's board scoffed, saying it was too low. When the markets crashed in spring, suddenly that same offer looked like the coolest ice cream cone on the hottest day of July! As Liekefett colorfully describes it, "Essentially the board went from 'hell no' to 'hell yes'!" Talk about a meltdown!

Looking ahead, Liekefett isn't mincing words. He's predicting "an entire wave of activism" about to crash onto corporate shores in the second half of this year. These bargain-hunting investors, now armed with larger stakes and more leverage, are turning up the thermostat on boardrooms nationwide. Corporate America better slap on some sunscreen – this summer's corporate drama is bringing third-degree burns to boardrooms across the country!

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