Civil Conspiracy Between Parent Corporations and Wholly Owned Subsidiaries: A National Survey
Richmond partner David Anthony and associate Timothy St. George had their article titled “ Civil Conspiracy Between Parent Corporations and Wholly Owned Subsidiaries: A National Survey ” published in the June 20 Bloomberg BNA Corporate Law & Accountability Report.
Per the duo:“In the antitrust context, the Supreme Court of the United States has squarely held that ‘a parent corporation and its wholly owned subsidiary are incapable of conspiring with each other.’ Most courts, however, have not faced the issue of whether this holding extends beyond the antitrust realm to bar civil conspiracy claims against parents and wholly-owned subsidiaries in other statutory and/or common-law contexts. The federal and state courts in those states to have dealt with this issue are divided, with the majority of courts barring such claims.” This article articulates the reasoning behind these competing positions, along with related commentary, and it provides an overview of the current status of the issue nationwide.