The Alberta Securities Commission has posted the case that will be presented at the Business & Securities Conference “Listen to the Experts”, June 20-21. Conference participants are encouraged to read the case study prior to attending the conference.

It has been designed to highlight a number of issues that are raised during the heat of a takeover bid. Management of the target company tries to delay or obstruct the bid to avoid having the target taken over or, if that is inevitable, to raise the price offered for the benefit of shareholders or to obtain what may be considered more friendly ownership. Management of the acquirer is trying to obtain control of the target at the cheapest price possible relative to its estimate of the target’s fair value.

Attendees have until June 21 to mull over the actions of Sauron Acquisitions Inc., its investment advisors ThumbNail Investment Advisors Inc., the legal advisors Mabel Lawry LLP, and its auditors Lima, Kidney and Black LLP. The target is Stumbledore Petroleum Inc. , which takes its investment advice from Thum, Nail and Associates, with legal assistance provided by Beagle Bogle Tibia, LLP.

The case includes a trivia contest and a detailed key to the trivia has been prepared by the case researchers, ASC analysts Gregory Osmond and Halyna Saciuk. Anyone individually or as a team of up to three members is invited to submit his/her best guess of all the trivia items to either of the researchers.

The winning individual and team will be entertained at a lunch hosted by the analysts and will be introduced at next year’s seminar as the TOB Trivia Hotshots.