JPMorgan and Morgan Stanley Sued Over Buyout Deal Roles

JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Morgan Stanley are facing lawsuits in the Delaware Court of Chancery over their conduct as financial advisers in multibillion-dollar buyout deals. Shareholders allege the banks steered the sales of public companies to private equity firms with which they had existing business relationships, resulting in share prices that undervalued the companies and assisted directors in breaching their fiduciary duties.

These legal actions follow a March 2025 revision of Delaware law that shielded top executives and directors in insider deals but left financial advisers exposed to liability. The litigation trend is further supported by a recent ruling involving Goldman Sachs Group Inc., where a judge questioned if the central role of advisers makes them more susceptible to liability during breaches of duty.

JPMorgan and Morgan Stanley deny any wrongdoing, maintaining they conducted fair processes with proper disclosures. The law firm Block & Leviton brought four of the five recent cases targeting financial advisers following the changes to Delaware law.