A Delaware Court of Chancery order requiring Wal-Mart to release internal documents regarding its directors’ knowledge of alleged wrongdoing by the company’s Mexican affiliate was too broad, the retailer’s attorney told the Delaware Supreme Court last week. But an attorney representing the company’s shareholders said the number of documents it requested was essential for the purpose of pursuing derivative claims against the retailer.
In May 2013, then-Chancellor Leo E. Strine Jr. issued a bench ruling ordering Wal-Mart to provide plaintiff Indiana Electrical Workers Pension Trust Fund IBEW with information about the board’s investigation into whether the Mexican affiliate, Walmex, bribed government officials in order to obtain building permits for desirable locations.
