Dissenters face long battle on Raglan issue lawyer says

But they face months of complicated legal procedures in order to do so, a Toronto lawyer says.

According to John Sabine, a corporate lawyer with Campbell Godfrey and Lewtas of Toronto, shareholders who opposed the plan must be judged to hold dissenters rights before they receive a formal fair value offer for their shares from Falconbridge. “Not all of them will qualify,” Sabine told The Northern Miner.

New Quebec Raglan recently became a wholly-owned subsidiary of Falconbridge following a special meeting in which more than 98% of Raglan shareholders voted in favor of the plan.

Raglan’s chief asset is a 12- million ton Ungava, Que., nickel deposit, which Falconbridge says is only marginally economic in the current base metal climate and may never be developed.

All but 10 shareholders, representing about 200,000 Raglan shares, agreed to receive one Falconbridge share in exchange for every 5.5 Raglan shares unless they specifically asked for cash.

After receiving a formal fair value offer, legitimate dissenting shareholders have 30 days in which to decide whether to accept or reject the Falconbridge offer. If they object, Falconbridge can then ask the Supreme Court to fix a fair value on the New Quebec Raglan shares.

Even though the fair value offer to be tabled this week is expected to be the same one offered to the majority of Raglan shareholders, the dissenters might end up with a higher price for their shares, said Sabine. “But only if they have gone through the legal process properly,” he said.

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