As reported in the Wall Street Journal, stockholders owning about 5 percent of AOL, Inc., are seeking greater returns than the $50/share buyout price paid by Verizon Communications by pursuing appraisal of their shares.  The deal was valued at $4.4 billion.  As reported in the article, this appraisal case is yet another example of how the appraisal mechanism has evolved from a “little-used remedy” to a “bona fide investing strategy.”  Thus, as the Wall Street Journal reports, a record 40 appraisal cases were brought in 2014, and another 28 have been filed already in 2015 having a face value of about $1.8 billion.