Business Law Newsletters
Business Judgment Rule
The business judgment rule protects a director(s) from personal liability if he or she has performed diligently and carefully in legitimate furtherance of corporate objectives and purposes and has not acted fraudulently, illegally, or otherwise in bad faith. The business judgment rule may be codified, but it is largely a matter of judicial interpretation and application. The business judgment rule is frequently invoked in shareholder damage suits against a director or board of directors. Courts generally acknowledge that the business judgment rule either does or may apply to corporate officers.
Disclosure of Material Facts
The duty of disclosure is a component of the duty of loyalty, but it also implicates the director's obligation to act with due care and in good faith. As part of the duty of care, a director should reveal all relevant material information that he possesses about a transaction to all who are in the position of making a decision about that transaction. The director has a duty to make an informed decision because it will ultimately affect the corporate interest and welfare.
Interval Investment Funds
Interval funds are a type of closed-end fund that offers to buy shares in the fund back from investors at stated intervals and in stated amounts. However, shareholders are not obligated to sell their shares back to the fund.
Protection for Toxic Substances Control Act Whistleblowers
Protection for Toxic Substances Control Act Whistleblowers
Ultra Vires Acts
In most states, the duty of obedience is recognized as one of the three fiduciary duties a director owes to the corporation. One component of the duty of obedience is that a director is prohibited from committing an ultra vires act. Ultra vires, translated from the Latin, means "beyond powers." An ultra vires act is beyond the scope of the powers bestowed on the corporation (and the director) by the corporate charter or bylaws. Thus, a director commits an ultra vires act when he acts without or beyond the authority vested in him by the corporation.
