Arcelor: A slap in the face

So much for the promised value-based defence. Arcelor has created a potent poison pill. The European steelmaker has put its newly acquired Dofasco subsidiary in a Dutch trust which blocks a new owner from selling it. That’s a real problem for Mittal Steel. The London-based steelmaker has to sell Dofasco, or comparable assets, to avoid antitrust problems in its hostile bid for Arcelor. No other jurisdictions allow this sort of defence. And with good reason. It is no more than a roadblock against...