13 Facts About Kathaleen McCormick

Kathaleen Saint Jude McCormick was born on 1979 and is an American lawyer and judge on the Delaware Court of Chancery, first as a vice chancellor from 2018 to 2021 and then as the current chancellor since 2021.

Kathaleen McCormick is the first female chancellor in Delaware history.

Kathaleen McCormick earned a Bachelor of Arts in philosophy from Harvard University, and her Juris Doctor from Notre Dame Law School.

Kathaleen McCormick began her career as a legal aid lawyer.

Kathaleen McCormick is the first woman to lead the court since it was established in 1792.

Kathaleen McCormick rejected Kohlberg's arguments that the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in a material adverse change or a breach of the ordinary course of business covenant in the merger agreement by the plaintiffs, then held that Kohlberg had breached its contractual obligation to use its "reasonable best efforts" to obtain financing for the transaction.

On July 13,2022, McCormick was assigned to adjudicate the merger dispute between Twitter, Inc and Elon Musk, Twitter v Musk.

Over Musk's objections, Kathaleen McCormick granted Twitter's motion for expedited treatment of the lawsuit and set a trial date for October 2022.

Observers noted that in the KCAKE case in 2021, Kathaleen McCormick had granted the same relief that Twitter sought, forcing the buyer in that case to close the transaction.

In January 2024, McCormick voided Elon Musk's $55 billion Tesla pay package in the case of Tornetta v Musk, et al.

Kathaleen McCormick then ruled that the size of the pay package was extraordinary and unfair.

However, Kathaleen McCormick reaffirmed her decision in December 2024, citing a lack of legal precedent for reversing a decision based on a post-trial ratification.

In connection with the case, the plaintiff's attorneys initially sought a fee award of $5.6 billion, representing 29 million shares of Tesla stock, but Kathaleen McCormick awarded them $345 million in cash or Tesla shares.