Newsletters

Business & Corporate Entities: Corporations

Professional Corporation Basics

Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002

Employers have a general duty under the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA) to provide a workplace free from "recognized" hazards. A violation of this duty can lead to criminal sanctions in addition to civil penalties. An employer can also be exposed to liability under occupational safety and health regulations promulgated by the Secretary of the Department of Labor. Directors and high-level executive officers must act to reduce or eliminate workplace dangers or risk OSHA liability.

Methods for Protecting Shareholders

Owners of shares of a corporation have the right to vote for directors and to share proportionally in any distribution of corporate profits or, in the case of dissolution, in the distribution of corporate assets. There are several ways to protect these interests of shareholders. Such protection is especially important to shareholders of closely held corporations who may not be able to or do not wish to find a market for their shares.

Investment Manager Reports To Be Filed With the Securities and Exchange Commission

Institutional investment managers must report to the Securities and Exchange Commission on Form 13F those securities registered under Section 13(f) of the Securities Act of 1933 over which the investment managers exercise discretion.

Interlocking Directorates

Section 8 of the Clayton Act, 15 U.S.C.S. § 19, prohibits corporations from having the same directors or officers in some instances. Thus, under Section 8, a person may not serve as an officer or director of two non-bank corporations if one of the companies has more than $10 million (adjusted for annual GDP changes) in capital, surplus, and undivided profits and the companies compete so that an agreement between them would eliminate that competition and result in a violation of an antitrust law. An example of a violation of an antitrust law which Section 8 of the Clayton Act is designed to prevent is an agreement between two or more competitors on the prices they charge, which would be a per se illegal agreement under Section 1 of the Sherman Act, 15 U.S.C.S. § 1.