A British Columbia Securities Commission panel dismissed Wednesday an application by the Icahn Group for temporarily cease trade orders against Lions Gate Entertainment Corp. and funds controlled by board member Mark Rachesky.
U.S. billionaire Carl Icahn has made a hostile takeover bid for the movie studio behind the "Saw" horror franchise and the Oscar-winning movie "Precious: Based on the Novel 'Push' By Sapphire."
"The panel noted that the court is the most efficient forum to resolve the issues, and said that a temporary order is not necessary in the public interest at this time," the commission said.
Lions Gate said it was pleased with the decision in a statement late Wednesday night.
Icahn wants to reverse a debt-for-equity swap between Lions Gate and Rachesky.
The activist investor is suing Lions Gate in a New York court alleging it used "scorched earth tactics" in an effort to prevent him from taking over the film company.
Named in the suit are Lions Gate, its board, Kornitzer Capital Management Inc., Rachesky and Rachesky's investment fund.
Icahn resumed his hostile bid for the independent movie company last week, and the studio followed by making a debt-to-equity conversion that diluted Icahn's stake and boosted that of a board member.
The latest round of fiery words comes after Icahn renewed his bid for Lions Gate at US$6.50 per share, an offer that's 50 cents lower than his previous bid. It's still above an agreement made with Rachesky that's worth $6.20 per share.
Lions Gate swapped $100 million in convertible bonds owned by Kornitzer Capital for bonds with a later maturity and the right of conversion into common shares at $6.20 per share.
Kornitzer then sold those bonds for $105.7 million to Rachesky, who immediately converted them into shares.
As a result, Icahn said his stake dipped to 33 per cent from about 37.9 per cent, while Rachesky's holdings increased to 28.9 per cent from 19.9 per cent.
Lions Gate is based in Canada, but operates out of Santa Monica, Calif.