In Smith v. Van Gorkom, 1 the Delaware Supreme Court held that the directors of Trans Union Corporation breached their fiduciary duty of care by approving a merger without adequate information on the fairness of the offered price of $55 per share.' Trans Union's directors, who relied solely on their chairman for the valuation of the transaction,' did not follow the common practice of asking an investment banker to render a fairness opinion. 4 The court suggested that, although fairness opinions were not required by law, the directors could have exercised an informed business judgment by obtaining such an opinion. 5 As one of the few cases imposing personal liability on the reputable directors of a major corporal. 488 A.2d 858 (Del. 1985). 2. Id. at 874. The existence of a substantial premium over market value, without more information, did not provide an adequate basis for approving the transaction. Id. at 869 n.9 (offered price represented premium of 62% over average of Trans Union's high and low prices during previous nine months, and premium of 48% over last closing price). 3. Id. at 876-77. At the time of the directors' decision, no formal analysis (either in-house or outside) of Trans Union's value in an acquisition had been prepared. The chief financial officer's brief oral statement to the directors regarding the feasibility of a leveraged buyout did not constitute an adequate valuation study or "report" on which the directors could rely as defined by DEL. CODE ANN. tit. 8, § 141(e) (1983). Van Gorkom, 488 A.2d at 875. 4. Directors ask investment bankers to render fairness opinions in a wide variety of corporate control transactions.

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the parcel-level impacts of the zoning change. Design/methodology/approach Using hedonic regression and propensity score matching econometric techniques, this paper analyses single-family housing prices within Fulton County Georgia. This paper combines data on the parcel-level zoning changes with nearby housing sales transactions to study the potential externality effects because of rezoning induced by private parties. Findings The paper finds evidence of heterogeneous rezoning effects, depending upon the type of rezoning conducted. At a distance within 0.75 miles, housing prices appreciate by 8.31% when nearby privately initiated rezoning maintains the residential character of a neighbourhood. However, housing prices decline by 21.26% when residential housing zones are converted to non-residential housing zones. The negative influences of rezoning residential use to non-residential uses decline as distance increases. Originality/value The analysis provides quantitative information on the impact of rezoning on residential property prices. Planning officials and developers can use these results to assuage homeowner fears of potential negative housing price effects associated with rezoning.

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