MRK is claiming that the merger was structured in reverse so Schering purchased Merck and this is the "New Merck" and therefore does not violate the contract between Schering and JNJ,.
In law school we called this "form over substance". Substance should control but lawyers get paid to use form to conceal substance.
How does the saying go? "A rose by any other name would smell as sweet."
ij
There are times when rules and precedents cannot be broken; others when they cannot be adhered to with safety. (Thomas Joplin)