UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
WASHINGTON, DC 20549
FORM 8-K
CURRENT REPORT
PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d)
OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported): February 17, 2023
Commission File Number: 001-39558
(Exact Name of Registrant as Specified in its Charter)
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Item 8.01 Other Events
On February 17, 2023, Perella Weinberg Partners (the “Company”) filed a petition in the Delaware Court of Chancery (the “Court of Chancery”) pursuant to Section 205 of the Delaware General Corporation Law (“DGCL”), seeking validation of an amendment to its Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation increasing the authorized common stock of the Company (as further described below).
At a special meeting of the stockholders of the Company held on June 22, 2021 (the “2021 Special Meeting”), a majority of the then-outstanding shares of the Company’s Class A common stock and Class B common stock, voting as a single class, voted to approve the Company’s Second Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation, which, among other things, increased the authorized shares of the Company’s Class A common stock from 100,000,000 to 1,500,000,000 shares (the “Authorized Share Charter Amendment”).
A recent decision of the Court of Chancery has created uncertainty regarding the validity of the Authorized Share Charter Amendment and whether a separate vote of the majority of the then-outstanding shares of Class A common stock would have been required under Section 242(b)(2) of the DGCL.
The Company continues to believe that a separate vote of Class A common stock was not required to approve the Authorized Share Charter Amendment. However, in light of the recent Court of Chancery decision, the Company filed a petition in the Court of Chancery pursuant to Section 205 of the DGCL seeking validation of the Authorized Share Charter Amendment to resolve any uncertainty with respect thereto. Section 205 of the DGCL permits the Court of Chancery, in its discretion, to validate potentially defective corporate acts and stock after considering a variety of factors.
While the Company believes that a separate vote of Class A common stock was not required to approve the Authorized Share Charter Amendment at the 2021 Special Meeting if the Company is not successful in the Section 205 proceeding, the uncertainty with respect to the Company’s capitalization resulting from the Court of Chancery’s decision referenced above could have a material adverse effect on the Company, including its ability to complete financing transactions, until the underlying issues are definitively resolved.
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
This Form 8-K contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the “safe harbor” provisions of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. You can identify these forward-looking statements by the use of words such as “estimates,” “projected,” “expects,” “estimated,” “anticipates,” “forecasts,” “plans,” “intends,” “believes,” “seeks,” “may,” “will,” “would,” “future,” “propose,” “target,” “goal,” “objective,” “outlook” and variations of these words or similar expressions (or the negative versions of such words or expressions) are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements are subject to various risks and uncertainties. Accordingly, there are or will be important factors that could cause actual outcomes or results to differ materially from those indicated in these statements. We undertake no obligation to publicly update or review any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise. With respect to the matters addressed in this report, no assurances can be made regarding the outcome of our proceeding pursuant to Section 205 of the DGCL or any claims, proceedings or litigation regarding the authorization of our Class A common stock. Our Section 205 proceeding is, and any other litigation regarding the authorization of our stock would be, subject to uncertainties inherent in the litigation process, and may not result in timely resolution of the uncertainty regarding our capitalization, if at all. A further list and description of these risks, uncertainties and other factors can be found in the Company’s filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. These filings and subsequent filings are or will be available online at www.sec.gov or on request from the Company.
SIGNATURE
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, the Registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.
| PERELLA WEINBERG PARTNERS | ||||||||
Date: February 17, 2023 | By: | /s/ Gary Barancik | ||||||
| Name: | Gary Barancik | |||||||
| Title: | Chief Financial Officer | |||||||