Latest news KDR, page-76

I've done about 30 mining deals in the past 10 years or so.

Firstly, HOAs are not binding, except for the confidentiality provisions. Even when they're titled "binding" they're not binding. They are typically subject to some form of definitive agreement as one cannot possibly capture all detail in a HOA, let alone a text message!

Secondly, parties can drop out of deals at any time, e.g. being gazumped or changing one's mind.

The precedent a KDR loss would set would have ramifications across the whole corporate landscape. Talk about jurisdictional risk!