Hampton Roads Bankshares, Inc. v. Harvard

Opinion by Justice WILLIAM C. MIMS.

In this appeal, we consider whether a financial institution participating in the federal Troubled Assets Relief Program ("TARP") can assert the federal prohibition on "golden parachute payments" as a defense to a breach of contract action brought by one of its former senior executive officers, and whether said officer may collaterally attack the prohibition as an unconstitutional taking without just compensation. We also consider whether a fee shifting provision in an employment agreement falls within the scope of a prohibited "golden parachute payment."

I.…