Liberty Challenges News Corp. Settlement

Liberty Media Corp. challenged News Corp.’s settlement of a shareholder lawsuit over the company’s “poison pill” takeover defense.

Liberty, based in Englewood, Colo., asked Delaware Chancery Court Judge William B. Chandler III to reject the accord in papers filed Friday. The settlement, disclosed April 13, would bar shareholders from suing to change poison pill plans, Liberty Media said.

Poison pills give shareholders right to buy new shares at a discount, making hostile takeovers prohibitively expensive. News Corp. adopted its poison pill after Liberty Media boosted its voting stake in the New York-based company to 17% from 9%, posing a challenge to Chairman Rupert Murdoch.