Lawyers who, like me, litigate ESOP cases often end up with a skewed view of ESOPs, if we aren’t careful. There is sort of a selection bias at play, in that we typically see the ESOPs where something has gone wrong, or is at least claimed to have gone wrong. I have had plenty of those types of cases, but I have also had the good fortune of representing some very well run and, for the employee owners, profitable and beneficial ESOPs. This article by Gene Marks in The Guardian on the benefits of ESOPs does a nice job of explaining exactly why, in my experience, a well run ESOP is a boon for all involved.
