Montana Code 35-1-1406. Benefit corporation governance — liability
35-1-1406. Benefit corporation governance — liability. (1) A director of a public benefit corporation shall:
Terms Used In Montana Code 35-1-1406
- Beneficiary: A person who is entitled to receive the benefits or proceeds of a will, trust, insurance policy, retirement plan, annuity, or other contract. Source: OCC
- Benefit corporation: means a corporation organized in this state that has elected to become subject to this part and whose status as a benefit corporation has not been terminated as provided in 35-1-1408. See Montana Code 35-1-1402
- Corporation: A legal entity owned by the holders of shares of stock that have been issued, and that can own, receive, and transfer property, and carry on business in its own name.
- Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
- Director: means an individual elected to or otherwise serving on the board of directors of a benefit corporation. See Montana Code 35-1-1402
- General public benefit: means a material, positive impact on society and the environment, taken as a whole, as assessed against a third-party standard, from the business and operations of a benefit corporation. See Montana Code 35-1-1402
- Independent: means having no material relationship with a benefit corporation or a subsidiary of a benefit corporation. See Montana Code 35-1-1402
- Person: includes a corporation or other entity as well as a natural person. See Montana Code 1-1-201
- Specific public benefit: means :
(a)providing low-income or underserved individuals or communities with beneficial products or services;
(b)promoting economic opportunity for individuals or communities beyond the creation of jobs in the ordinary course of business;
(c)preserving the environment;
(d)improving human health;
(e)promoting the arts, sciences, or advancement of knowledge;
(f)increasing the flow of capital to entities with a public benefit purpose; or
(g)the accomplishment of any other particular benefit for society or the environment. See Montana Code 35-1-1402
(a)perform the duties of a director in good faith and in a manner the director believes to be in the best interests of the benefit corporation; and
(b)conduct reasonable inquiry in the manner that a prudent person in a similar position would conduct under similar circumstances.
(2)In discharging their respective duties and in considering the best interests of the benefit corporation, the board of directors, committees of the board, and individual directors of a benefit corporation:
(a)shall consider the impacts of every action or proposed action on:
(i)the shareholders of the benefit corporation;
(ii)the employees and workforce of the benefit corporation and its subsidiaries and suppliers;
(iii)the interests of customers of the benefit corporation as beneficiaries of the general public benefit purpose or any specific public benefit purpose of the benefit corporation;
(iv)community and societal considerations, including those of a community in which offices or facilities of the benefit corporation or its subsidiaries or suppliers are located;
(v)the local and global environment;
(vi)the short-term and long-term interests of the benefit corporation, including benefits that may accrue to the benefit corporation from its long-term plans and the possibility that the interests may be best served by retaining control of the benefit corporation rather than selling or transferring control to another person; and
(vii)the ability of the benefit corporation to accomplish its general public benefit purpose and any specific public benefit purpose;
(b)may consider:
(i)the resources, intent, and conduct, including past, stated, and potential conduct, of any person seeking to acquire control of the benefit corporation; and
(ii)any other pertinent factors or the interests of any other person or group; and
(c)are not required to give priority to any particular factor or the interests of any particular person or group referred to in this subsection (2) over any other factor or the interests of any other person or group unless the benefit corporation has stated its intention to give priority to a specific public benefit purpose identified in the articles of incorporation.
(3)In performing the duties of a director, a director may rely on information, opinions, reports, or statements, including financial statements and other financial data, in each case prepared or presented by:
(a)one or more officers or employees of the benefit corporation whom the director believes to be reliable and competent in the matters presented;
(b)counsel, independent accountants, or other persons as to matters that the director believes to be within those persons’ professional or expert competence; or
(c)a committee of the board on which the director does not serve if the director believes the committee merits confidence and if the director acts in good faith and without knowledge that would cause the director’s confidence in the committee to be unwarranted.
(4)A person who performs the duties of a director in accordance with this part is not liable for monetary damages for any alleged failure:
(a)to discharge the person’s obligations as a director; or
(b)of the benefit corporation to pursue or create general public benefit or a specific public benefit.
(5)In addition to the limitations provided in subsection (4), the liability of a director for monetary damages may be eliminated or limited in a benefit corporation’s articles of incorporation to the extent provided for in 35-14-202(2)(d).
(6)A director does not have a duty to a person who is a beneficiary of the general public benefit purpose or a specific public benefit purpose of a benefit corporation arising from the status of the person as a beneficiary.