沙袋条款 Sandbagging Provision/Clause

“沙袋条款”是Sandbagging Provision的直译，英文释义如下：

Also known as a pro-sandbagging provision. A provision that buyers in M&A transactions often try to include in the merger or purchase agreement to reserve their right to bring indemnification claims against the seller for breach of a representation or warranty, or covenant, even if the buyer knew about the breach before the closing and proceeded to close the transaction.

This provision is particularly important to preserve the buyer's indemnification rights since many jurisdictions (including New York) require this reservation to be stated in the merger or purchase agreement or in another written document co-signed by the seller. Sellers often try to exclude the sandbagging provision or include an anti-sandbagging provision.

其在国际投融资与并购实践中颇受关注，主要涉及和解决的法律问题是：如果买方在交割之前实际知晓（actual knowledge）或推定知晓（constructive knowledge）卖方违反了其所作的陈述、保证或承诺，但依然选择继续交割，那么在交割之后，买方是否可就其在交割前所知晓的卖方违约事实追究卖方的违约责任（Post-closing Remedies）？

根据上述问题的答案的是与否，“沙袋条款”主要包括如下两种形式：Pro-sandbagging Provision和Anti-sandbagging Provision。其中，Pro-sandbagging Provision是说买方可以就此寻求Post-closing Remedies，示范内容如下：

The right to indemnification, payment, reimbursement, or other remedy based upon any such representation, warrant, covenant, or obligation will not be affected by…any investigation conducted or any Knowledge acquired at any time, whether before or after the execution and delivery of this Agreement or the Closing Date, with respect to the accuracy or inaccuracy of, or compliance with, such representation, warranty, covenant, or obligation. (ABA Model Stock Purchase Agreement, Second Edition)

根据ABA 2015 European Private Target M&A Deal Points Study（2015 European Study）的统计数据显示，22%的欧洲并购交易（Private Target）中约定了Pro-sandbagging Provision（而根据2015 US Study的统计数据显示，35%的美国并购交易（Private Target）中约定了Pro-sandbagging Provision）。

反沙袋条款 Anti-sandbagging Provision/Clause

Anti-sandbagging条款对卖方有利，在并购交易中，用于卖方防止买方就交割前买方已知但未在交割前提出并解决的卖方违约或不实陈述向卖方索赔。买方通常会提出排除anti-sandbagging条款，或者加入sandbagging条款。其英文释义如下：

An “anti-sandbagging” provision, as the name suggests, prohibits the buyer from sandbagging or seeking post-closing recourse regarding matters which the buyer knew about at or prior to closing.

而Anti-sandbagging Provision则是说买方不得就此寻求Post-closing Remedies，示范内容如下：

Seller shall not be liable for any Losses resulting from a breach of the Representations and Warranties if Buyer had knowledge of such Seller Breach and/or the facts and/or circumstances giving rise to such Seller Breach before Closing. (ABA 2015 European Private Target M&A Deal Points Study)

根据2015 European Study的统计数据显示，47%的欧洲并购交易（Private Target）中约定了Anti-sandbagging Provision（而根据2016 Canadian Study的统计数据显示，仅15%的加拿大并购交易（Private Target）中约定了Anti-sandbagging Provision）。

以下为相关例句，可供参考：

例句1

This is where sandbagging clauses come in play. In order to understand the concept, it is helpful to recall the origin of this term. In golf, a “sandbagger” is a person who pretends to be a worse player than he really is in order to take advantage of his or her rival. By lying about his abilities, a sandbagger gains additional handicap strokes and increases his chances of winning.

这就是沙袋条款发挥作用的地方。为了理解这个概念，回顾一下这个术语的起源是有帮助的。在高尔夫球运动中,“沙袋”指的是一个为了利用对手而假装自己比实际水平差的人。通过谎报自己的能力，打沙袋的人获得了额外的差点击球，增加了获胜的机会。

例句2

A pro-sandbagging clause, then, establishes that the buyer’s right to indemnification is not limited by the knowledge that it may or may not have had or that it could have obtained through a legal due diligence, while an anti-sandbagging clause prohibits the buyer from seeking post-closing recourse for any breach it already knew about.

那么，支持沙袋条款规定，买方获得赔偿的权利不受其可能已经或可能没有或可能已经通过法律尽职调查获得的知识的限制，而反沙袋条款禁止买方就其已经知道的任何违约寻求成交后追索权。

例句3

The answer to these questions could depend on how the buyer gained the knowledge (if the seller disclosed the breach to the buyer or if the buyer learned it from a third party or through its own due diligence) and, naturally, on the law applicable in the jurisdiction in which the deal is carried out. In that regard, it is interesting to briefly analyze the possible weight of pro-sandbagging and anti-sandbagging clauses in some of the chief jurisdictions in Latin America, namely Colombia, Mexico, Chile, Brazil and Peru.

这些问题的答案可能取决于买方是如何获得这一信息的（如果卖方向买方披露了违约行为，或者如果买方是从第三方或通过自己的尽职调查了解到这一信息），当然也取决于交易进行地所在法域的适用法律。在这方面，简要分析一下在拉丁美洲的一些主要管辖区，即哥伦比亚、墨西哥、智利、巴西和秘鲁，沙袋条款和反沙袋条款的可能份量是很有意思的。