Shareholders of insurance industry service provider Patriot National Inc. asked Delaware’s Chancery Court on Wednesday to issue a temporary restraining order against a dividend and stock repurchase program supported by a CEO accused of managing company finances for his own entrenchment.
Attorneys for Henry Wasik, Patriot’s current director and past president and CEO, said in a reply brief that current CEO Steven Mariano’s plan would cost the company a combined $107 million in dividends and stock repurchase costs, exceeding its present cash reserves.
“Without court intervention, plaintiff and the other minority stockholders will see their long-term investment in Patriot National destroyed by Mariano in his attempt to remain its controller,” Wasik said in the TRO motion.