NEW YORK – September 23, 2026 -- M&A litigation settlements in the Delaware Court of Chancery hit 25 in 2025, the highest count since 2012, yet aggregate settlement value collapsed to $326.6 million from an inflation-adjusted peak of $734.8 million in 2023, according to a Cornerstone Research report released today.
The median settlement fell to $10 million in 2025, the lowest figure recorded across the 14-year study period, which draws on a hand-collected sample of 143 settlements with known monetary amounts between 2012 and 2025.
SPAC litigation drove down average deal sizes across the board
De-SPAC transaction disputes accounted for 68% of 2025 settlements and 53% of the year's total settlement value, averaging $10.1 million with a median of $8.8 million. Frank Schneider, Senior Vice President and Cohead of Cornerstone's Valuation, M&A, and Bankruptcy Practice, said the surge in SPAC litigation involved lower claimed damages, and that settlement values in non-SPAC cases fell as well.
Traditional M&A settlements dropped sharply year-over-year
Non-SPAC settlements averaged $19.4 million in 2025, down from $41.5 million in 2024, with the median falling to $14.6 million from $24.1 million over the same span. All 2025 settlements stayed below $50 million, and 80% came in under $20 million, compared with just 42% between 2020 and 2024.
Claimed damages explain the bulk of settlement variation
Paul Zurek, Vice President and Cohead of the same practice, noted that larger transactions and larger claimed damages statistically correlate with higher settlements. Claimed damages account for 71% of the variation in settlement amounts, with a 10% increase in damages linked to a 6.4% rise in settlement value. Yet settlement amounts as a percentage of claimed damages shrink as claims grow — from a 44.0% median for claims under $25 million in 2025 to just 2.2% for claims exceeding $1 billion between 2020 and 2024.
Settlements as a share of transaction value hit a new low
The median settlement as a percentage of transaction value dropped to 0.5% in 2025, continuing a decline from a 2020 high of 3.9%. Plaintiff composition also shifted: 72% of 2025 settlements involved acquirer stockholders, largely SPAC investors, up from 29% between 2020 and 2024. Plaintiff counsel fees reached their lowest recorded levels, tracking the drop in settlement sizes and fee percentages.