William Regner, an M&A partner at Debevoise & Plimpton LLP in New York, has followed Delaware law closely since he started practice in 1994. This year, that’s meant tracking the amendments to the state’s corporate law code that were proposed on Feb. 17 and became law on March 25.

“Even without this legislation,” Regner said on this week’s Drinks With The Deal podcast, “I would still rather be in front of a Delaware court than any other. I think it’s the place where you have the best chance if you’re in a dispute of being understood.”

Nonetheless, Regner added, recent case law had created uncertainty about whether a director is independent and when a stockholder is a controller. “I do think that those were important areas to address, and I’m glad they addressed them,” he said.

Regner also talked about his mentor at Debevoise, the late Meredith Brown. “He taught me a great deal about what I know about being a lawyer and about being a person. He taught me to read everything, because being better prepared than the people you encounter in practice is a huge advantage. He was interested in almost everything, and so he taught me about the rewards of being intellectually venturesome.”

And, Regner continued, “He taught me how much of an influence one person can have on another. He really did change my life as a professional and as a person. That’s incredibly powerful, and that’s something I’ve also tried to remember, that each of us has the capacity to affect the lives of others coming up.”

Listen to the podcast with William Regner below:

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