Bass, Berry & Sims attorneys Matt Curley and Steve Taylor provided insight in the December issue of Risk & Insurance magazine discussing the hidden liabilities that often arise in mergers and acquisitions. As the number of mergers and acquisitions continue to rise, successor liability is heightened because it “‘is an area that the carriers really focus on because they don’t want to get bitten any more than the buyer of the company does. They are always trying to write policies to protect themselves from that big claim'” said Steve.

Healthcare providers are increasingly facing the risk of government enforcement under the False Claims Act. And, with the healthcare sector topping M&A charts, these companies may face increased risk of dealing with enforcement issues after the close of a transaction. “‘It’s only natural to anticipate that companies active in acquisitions will deal with the possibility of enforcement issues post-close; it is often the case that an acquired company will have a regulatory issue that does not emerge in due diligence and only comes to light after the deal closes,'” explained Matt.

The full article, “Hidden Harm: Unforeseen Liabilities in M&As May Cause Headaches for Buyers,” was published by Risk & Insurance on December 14, 2015 and is available online.