Coronavirus - Government measures in key jurisdictions - Flipbook - Page 88
United States of America
8
88
Company
law matters
Have any measures
been put in place
to accommodate
social distancing
(such as remote
general meetings)?
•
Yes, in many cases taking advantage of legal concepts already on the books. Generally,
U.S. corporate law is specific to the state of incorporation, except for listed companies,
where federal securities law considerations are important. State law generally permits
adjournment of annual meetings for emergencies, and for the conduct of meetings
by remote means. State law generally allows for action by written consent without a
meeting in many cases. For private companies, those whose charters contain conflicting
provisions are generally reviewing changing them. For public companies, the long-held
idea that holding annual meetings online could suppress shareholder democracy has
been turned around, with many enthusiastically embracing the idea.
Government measures in key jurisdictions