My first weekend as a newly minted Green Bay Packers stockholder and fan went well. A 46-16 victory over the Oakland Raiders, a team I've never liked, was a great way to start this new era in sports fandom. Meanwhile, my former favorite team -- the Washington Redskins -- continued their Dan Snyder/Mike Shanahan slide into futility, despite putting up a spirited battle with the New England Patriots. And, the Dallas Cowboys lost. Since my second favorite team is still whoever's playing the Cowboys, my top two teams won this weekend.
Turning to a more serious matter of law, what exactly is it that I own as a Packers' shareholder. Specifically, do I own a "security" as defined in the federal securities laws?
Self-described "business law and NFL" geek Joshua Fershee reviews the issues, but doesn't reach a firm conclusion. Instead, the post reminds me of the sort of advice that made Harry Truman famously wish for a one handed economist. Unfortunately, clients want yes or no answers. As a parter for whom I worked when I was in practice once told me, as he tossed a draft letter back at me for more work, "a legal opinion should at least seem to opine something." (Tip for young lawyers: A wonderful skill to develop is the ability to write an opinion letter that seems to opine something, but really doesn't. It will make you indispensable.)
So I'm sending this memo back to young Fershee with a request; namely, "if you had to write a cold comfort letter, which side of the issue would you come down on?"
