Item 1. Legal Proceedings
ITEM 1. LEGAL PROCEEDINGS.
Except as set forth below, we are not currently a party to any material legal proceedings.
On September 20, 2021, we commenced litigation in the New York Supreme Court, New York County against two investors who failed to fund their PIPE commitments in connection with the closing of the Business Combination. These actions are captioned Sustainable Opportunities Acquisition Corp. n/k/a TMC the metals company Inc. v. Ethos Fund I, LP, Ethos GP, LLC, Ethos DeepGreen PIPE, LLC, and Ethos Manager, LLC, Index No. 655527/2021 (N.Y. Sup. Ct.) and Sustainable Opportunities Acquisition Corp. n/k/a TMC the metals company Inc. v. Ramas Capital Management, LLC, Ramas Energy Opportunities I, LP, Ramas Energy Opportunities I GP, LLC, and Ganesh Betanabhatla, Index No. 655528/2021 (N.Y. Sup. Ct.). The operative complaints allege that the investors breached the relevant subscription agreement and that the investors’ affiliates tortiously interfered with the subscription agreements by causing the investor not to fund its contractual obligations. We are seeking compensatory damages (plus interest), equitable relief, expenses, costs, and attorneys’ fees. On December 17, 2021, the defendants at Ethos moved to dismiss the complaint. That motion is pending. There can be no assurances, however, that we will be successful in our efforts against these investors.
On October 28, 2021, a shareholder filed a putative class action against us, one of our executive and a former director in federal district court for the Eastern District of New York, captioned Caper v. TMC The Metals Company Inc. F/K/A Sustainable Opportunities Acquisition Corp., Gerard Barron and Scott Leonard. The complaint alleges that all defendants violated Section 10(b) of the Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5 promulgated thereunder, and Messrs. Barron and Leonard violated Section 20(a) of the Exchange Act, by making false and/or misleading statements and/or failing to disclose information about our operations and prospects during the period from March 4, 2021 and October 5, 2021. On November 15, 2021, a second complaint containing substantially the same allegations was filed, captioned Tran v. TMC the Metals Company, Inc. These cases have been consolidated. On March 6, 2022, a lead plaintiff was selected. An amended complaint was filed on May 12, 2022, reflecting substantially similar allegations, with the Plaintiff seeking to recover compensable damages caused by the alleged wrongdoings. We deny any allegations of wrongdoing and filed and served the plaintiff a motion to dismiss on July 12, 2022 and intend to defend against this lawsuit. On July 12, 2023, an oral hearing on the motion to dismiss was held. The parties are currently awaiting a ruling. There is no assurance, however, that we or the other defendants will be successful in our defense of this lawsuit or that insurance will be available or adequate to fund any settlement or judgment or the litigation costs of this action. If the motion to dismiss is unsuccessful, there is a possibility that we may incur a loss in this matter. Such losses or range of possible losses cannot be reliably estimated. A resolution of this lawsuit adverse to us or the other defendants, however, could have a material effect on our financial position and results of operations in the period in which the lawsuit is resolved.
In February 2022, we received letters from the SEC notifying us of an investigation and requesting the voluntary production of documents and information regarding our 2020 acquisition of Tonga Offshore Mining Limited from Deep Sea Mining Finance Ltd. and our Business Combination with Sustainable Opportunities Acquisition Corp. (“SOAC”). On May 24, 2024, we were notified by the SEC that it had concluded the investigation and that the SEC does not intend to recommend an enforcement action against the Company or its directors and officers.
On January 23, 2023, investors in the 2021 private placement from the Business Combination filed a lawsuit against us in the Commercial Division of New York Supreme Court, New York County, captioned Atalaya Special Purpose Investment Fund II LP et al. v. Sustainable Opportunities Acquisition Corp. n/k/a TMC The Metals Company Inc., Index No. 650449/2023 (N.Y. Sup. Ct.). We filed a motion to dismiss on March 31, 2023, after which the plaintiffs filed an amended complaint on June 5, 2023. The amended complaint alleges that we breached the representations and warranties in the plaintiffs’ private placement Subscription Agreements and breached the covenant of good faith and fair dealing. The Plaintiffs are seeking to recover compensable damages caused by the alleged wrongdoings. We deny any allegations of wrongdoing and filed a motion to dismiss the amended complaint on July 28, 2023. On December 7, 2023, the Court granted our motion to dismiss the claim for breach of the covenant of good faith and fair dealing and denied our motion to dismiss the breach of the Subscription Agreement claim. We filed a notice of appeal regarding the Court’s denial of our motion to dismiss the breach of the Subscription Agreement claim. There is no assurance that we will be successful in our defense of this lawsuit or that insurance will be available or adequate to fund any settlement or judgment or the litigation costs of this action. Such losses or range of possible losses cannot be reliably estimated.
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