Corporations Flashcards
Promoter & Liab
person who acts on behalf of corp not yet formed
-REMAINS liable on Pre-Inc Ks until NOVATION!
- Corp is liable ONLY once adoption of K via:
1. board resolution (express) OR
2. Implied Ratification through knowledge and acceptance of benefits
Formation of Corporation
A. DE JURE Corp:
- SIGNS and files Articles of Inc w/ SOS (see req below); proof of valid formation; (K betw corp & SH/State; Trumps anything said in bylaws)
- Incorporator (person or entity);
- name= Corporation, Company, Inc., Limited
- presume perpetual duration
Later- Bd has organizational mtg to select D/O and adopt bylaws (optional); SHs (& some states bd) can amend/repeal bylaws
FAILED to form de jure corp so proprietors personally liable bc GP UNLESS Juris allows:
B. DE FACTO Corp:
W/O Knowledge of lack of corporate status!
1. Relevant incorp statute (there is)
2. Parties made g/f colorable attempt to comply with statute AND
3. Some exercise of corporate privileges (acting like corp)
-Biz treated as corp for All purposes except in “quo warranto” action by state
C. Corp BY ESTOPPEL -
Contract Cases ONLY!
W/O knowledge of lack of corp formation!
One who treats biz as corp may be estopped from denying that it is corp (to avoid liab or get indivs)
*LIMITED LIABILITY - shields SH and D/O from Entity Liability, unless PCV; only lose investment; (SH only pierce-able in close corp if fraud/abuse and fairness requires)
Pierce Corporate Veil & Theories
!!!
EXAM!!:
1. General Rule: SH not liable for corp obligations
BUT,
2. Courts may PCV and reach the BAD SH (in close corp) or Parent Company if:
a. abused privilege of incorporating AND
b. Fairness must require holding them liable
- Court more milling to PCV for TORT victim (than K claimant who came willingly)
Theories:
1. Alter Ego - Identity of Interests
Failure to observe sufficient corporate formalities, comingling, treating corp assets as his own
- Undercapitalization - failure to maintain sufficient funds to cover reasonably forseeable liabilities
- Fraud - pierce when necessary to prevent fraud or to prevent individual from using entity to avoid existing personal obligations
Consideration for Stock
Corp must receive some form of consideration for stock! Bd determines value; conclusive if in G/F!
Majority approves:
1. money (cash/check),
2. tangible/intangible property,
or 3. services already performed for Corp
SPLIT - SOME states permit Promissory Notes or Future Svc
!!! Preemptive Rights
- Right of existing SH to maintain same % of ownership by buying stock whenever there is new issuance of stock for MONEY (fundraising)
- No preemptive rights unless expressly in articles (most states)
SPLIT -
some states say issuance of treasury stock is “new”, some don’t!
Corp Duty of Due Care
- Director owes Corp a duty of care to manage corp in G/F in the best interests of the corp, exercising due care in making business decisions = doing what an ordinarily prudent person would do in a like position;
Breach = Need CAUSATION and DAMAGES!
- Nonfeasance (doing nothing)
- Misfeasance (bd does something that hurts Corp
- NOT liable if Business Judgment Rule Defense: Ct/Bd will not 2nd guess biz decision if it was:
- informed
- made in good faith
- w/o conflicts of interest and
- with a rational basis
policy - Dir is not guarantor of success
Business Judgment Rule
(rebuttable) Presumption that Directors managed Corp w/ due care provided that biz decision was:
1. informed
2. made in good faith
3. w/o conflicts of interest and
4. with a rational basis
policy - Dir is not guarantor of success
Corp Duty of Loyalty
- Dir owes Corp a duty of LOYALTY. act in best interests of Corp, not themselves. -may not receive an UNFAIR benefit to detriment of Corp or its SH, unless there has been material disclosure and independent ratification:
(NO BJR bc COI)
- No Self Dealing (extreme salary, Interested trans)
- No competing w/ Corp
- No Usurping of Corp Opportunity/expectancy
A. Interested Dir. Transaction
(Deal betw Corp and Dir or related)
-Transaction set aside (and Dir liable for damages) UNLESS Directors shows either:
1. deal was FAIR to corp when entered
OR
2. Dir interest & relevant facts disclosed/known AND deal was approved by:
a. Majority disinterested dirs OR
b. majority of disinterested Shares
c. some states also require showing of FAIRNESS
B. Competing Ventures
-may not compete,
REMEDY: constructive trust
C. Corp Opportunity
- Corp has interest/expectancy in
- Opp is w/in corp’s scope of business
* Dir found on Co time w/ Co resources
Dir Cannot act UNLESS:
- tells Bd about Opp and
- waits for Bd to reject opportunity
REMEDY: must sell to Corp at cost, & Corp gets profit
Derivative Suit
!!
SH brings suit on behalf of Corp’s interests, ALWAYS ASK:
- Could Corp have brought this suit? if so, Deriv
- Is SH suing for Personal Claim? If so, NOT deriv
MUST:
1. have CONTEMPORANEOUS OWNERSHIP of stock when
A. claim arose AND B. (Maj) throughout suit
(or received through operation of law by person who did, inheritance/divorce)
AND
2. Adequate representation of Corp Interest AND
3. Written Demand to Corp to bring suit, rejected or ignored for 90 days UNLESS would be FUTILE
5. Demand made on SH to ratify contract or bring suit; (SOME juris)
- Corp must be joined as Defendant at 1st
- can only settle/dismiss w/ ct approval/inquiry
- *Corp can move to dismiss if
1. INDEPENDENT investigation showed suit
2. NOT in BEST INTERESTS of Corp. (low win rate, overly expensive) by indie directors or ct appointed panel of indie Indivs - some states court will eval if truly indie/best Int
- If SH wins, recovery goes to Corp and individual is reimbursed for costs & attorney fees
- if SH loses, NO reimbursement for costs and Liable for Defendant’s costs if sued w/o reasonable cause; Claim preclusion applies
SH Proxies
Decision to have another Vote on behalf of SH. MUST be:
- written (fax or email ok)
- Signed by Record SH
- Directed to Corp secretary
- Authorizing another to vote your shares
- valid for 11 months ONLY
- REVOCABLE UNLESS:
1. conspicuously made irrevocable AND
2. Proxy holder has interest in shares other than mere voting
SH agmts to control Voting
SH vote at meetings OR can act by UNanimous written consent signed by holders of all voting shares (email ok), can meet anywhere
**Need NOTICE (unless waived acts void)
Annual Mtg (time and place)
OR SPECIAL Mtg (10 day minimum notice stating purpose which is LIMIT on acts allowed) called by:
1) bd 2) president 3) 10% of voting shares OR 4) anyone authorized by bylaws
- Pooling Agmt: binding Written Signed agmt to vote shares as required in agmt, no time limit
- some states specifically enforceable - Voting Trust: Formal written agmt delegating voting power to trustee, 10 yrs MAX
- written, controlling how share will be voted
- copy to corp, on file
- transfer legal title to shares to trustee
- orig SH receives trust certificates and retains all SH rights except voting
- SH agmts to eliminate corp formalities (close corp)
- need unanimous election in articles, by laws or filed agmt and reasonable share transfer restriction
- no piercing even if fail to observe and may elect S corps status - Stock Transfer Restriction (must be reasonable)
10b5 Action
!
10b5- makes it unlawful for any person (Directly/indirectly) to use any means or instrumentality of interstate commerce to 1) employ any scheme to defraud, 2) make an untrue statement (or omission) of material fact, or 3) engage in any practice that operates as a fraud IN CONNX w/ the PURCHASE or SALE of any SECURITY
Fed law prohibits any fraudulent conduct in CONNECTION w/ purchase or sale of a Security in interstate commerce.
Private Plaintiff Or SEC can bring
NEED:
1. Juris - Trans involves instrumentality of ISC
(sale on Natl stock xchange, mail, telephone)
- Fraudulent Conduct
a. Insider Trading (must disclose or abstain)- Insider 2. trades in ISC 3. on basis of material inside information, 4. breaching DUTY to abstain/disclose
b. Tipping
Insider w/ duty passes along material inside info for a wrongful purpose
- Insider 2. trades in ISC 3. on basis of material inside information, 4. breaching DUTY to abstain/disclose
Insider = D/O, Controlling SH, EE w/ access of issuer, indiv w/ access)
c. Misrepresentation or Omission of MATERIAL info
a reasonable investor would consider important in making investment/stock decisions
- Material information
- Scienter- w/ INTENT to DECEIVE, manipulate, defraud; Recklessness may suffice
- Reliance
Private P MUST’ve bought or sold on basis of info
OR presumed in public misrepresentation and nondisclosure cases - Proximately caused Damages
Possible Defendants!:
- Co that issued misleading press release
- buyer or seller who misrepresents material info
- buyer or seller who TRADES on material inside info (when there is duty to disclose)
- Tipper or Tippee
**no 10b5 liab? try for misappropriation
Relief or Remdy?
Insider Trading 10b5 violation
Insider breaches 10b5 if by trading he breaches a Fiduciary DUTY of trust and confidence owed to
- issuer 2. SH or issuer or 3. in case of misappropriation, another person who is source of Material non public info
- Person must be insider
- bought or sold stock via ISC
- Based on non public info
Tipper Liability
- Insider w/ duty
- w/ improper purpose (not accident)
- gives material inside info to TP who trades on basis of that information,
- Tipper receives some personal gain direct or indirect (monetary or reputation)
Tippee Liability
liable under 10b5 if:
- Tippee bought/sold on ISC
- Tippee KNEW or should’ve known tipper breached fid duty in sharing
- if so must disgorge profits
- a Tippee is not liable unless TIpper Liable too….
Misappropriation Theory
brought by Gov under 10b5, on any person who trades on non public market info in breach of a duty of trust and confidence owed to the SOURCE OF THE INFO; duty need not be owed to corp or SH; imposes a DUTY
- misappropriated confidential material info from ANY source
- in breach of a duty of trust and confidence owed to SOURCE of information
- trades
Ex. indiv trades in TP Co, but impugns duty (to source) to TP corp
Disgorge profits, maybe punitive damages too.
16b Short Swing Profits - S/L
Fed law provides that any profit realized by Dir, O, or 10% SH(BEFORE PURCHASE & SALE!!!) from any purchase and sale, of any equity security of his corp w/in a 6 mos period must be returned to corp. (bad for market confidence)
S/L! Often Derivative suit
Dir, Officer, or + 10%SH when bought AND sold;
Applies to Reporting Corps:
- buying/selling w/in 6 month period AND
- listed on natl Stock exchange OR
- at least 2k SH (or 500 non accredited SH) AND 10 million in assets
SOL: profits Recoverable IF w/in 6 mos BEFORE OR AFTER ANY SALE, there was purchase at a lower price. (order of buy/sell doesn’t matter);
profit = largest # she bought AND sold w/in 6 mos. (the number of shares she made profit on)
Sarbanes Oxley
violation if willful certifying of false report
-5 mil fine + 20 yrs
CL Liab for insider Trading
Tort, Fraud, Misrep
(Remedies -
liable for profits, or can impose constructive trust, or punitive damages)
D/O disclosure duty
Fiduciary Duty NOT to disclose material non public information, do not breach!
Fid duty to disclose material corp info to other members of Board!
Remedies for Ultra Vires Acts
- UV Contracts are valid as to TPs
- SHs can seek injunction to stop UV act
- Corp can sue responsible Mgrs for UV losses
authorized stock
max number of shares the corp can sell
issued stock
number of shares corp actually sells
outstanding stock
shares that have been issue and not reacquired
Articles of Inc MUST include:
- Some general STATEMENT OF PURPOSE
*If Specific Purpose w/ Ultra Vires Rules BEWARE Ultra Vires acts beyond scope of auth & remedies
name/address of each incorporator - name/address of each initial director
- name of registered agent & address of registered office
- authorized stock (max shares can sell)
- number of shares per class
- info on voting rights/preferences of each class
- preemptive rights
- cumulative voting
- preferred stock or liquidation
Law governing Corp
Law of state where Corp is formed! No matter where Inc. does business
Taxation for Corp
Double Taxation - entity taxed on income/profits and indivs taxed on dividends
UNLESS - Form S Corp -has no more than 100 SH, -all SH human, US citizens or residents; 1 class of stock only, NOT publicly traded