I don't know if things would have been different if all of this was done off-line prior to the announcement of the sale. To my thinking, having major players hash things out in private first might have been a better way to go so that the nuisance of public opinion doesn't tarnish all the egos involved.
At any rate, that's what I would have done. I would have got Ned, Justin, and the witnesses in a private meeting before going public with the sale.
The optics on all of this is lousy...And I don't see how it's serving anyone, really, and if it ends up destroying the chain...well, fcuk!