§ 903. Authorization by shareholders.

(a) The board of each constituent corporation, upon adopting such plan of merger or consolidation, shall submit such plan to a vote of shareholders in accordance with the following:

(1) Notice of meeting shall be given to each shareholder of record, as of the record date fixed pursuant to section 604 (Fixing record date), whether or not entitled to vote. A copy of the plan of merger or consolidation or an outline of the material features of the plan shall accompany such notice.

(2) The plan of merger or consolidation shall be adopted at a meeting of shareholders by (i) for corporations in existence on the effective date of this clause the certificate of incorporation of which expressly provides such or corporations incorporated after the effective date of subclause (A) of clause (ii) of this subparagraph, a majority of the votes of the shares entitled to vote thereon or (ii) for other corporations in existence on the effective date of this clause, two-thirds of the votes of all outstanding shares entitled to vote thereon. Notwithstanding any provision in the certificate of incorporation, the holders of shares of a class or series of a class shall be entitled to vote together and to vote as a separate class if both of the following conditions are satisfied:

(A) such shares will remain outstanding after the merger or consolidation or will be converted into the right to receive shares of stock of the surviving or consolidated corporation or another corporation, and

(B) the certificate or articles of incorporation of the surviving or consolidated corporation or of such other corporation immediately after the effectiveness of the merger or consolidation would contain any provision which, is not contained in the certificate of incorporation of the corporation and which, if contained in an amendment to the certificate of incorporation, would entitle the holders of shares of such class or such one or more series to vote and to vote as a separate class thereon pursuant to section 804 (Class voting on amendment).

In such case, in addition to the authorization of the merger or consolidation by the requisite number of votes of all outstanding shares entitled to vote thereon pursuant to the first sentence of this subparagraph (2), the merger or consolidation shall be authorized by a majority of the votes of all outstanding shares of the class entitled to vote as a separate class. If any provision referred to in subclause (B) of clause (ii) of this subparagraph would affect the rights of the holders of shares of only one or more series of any class but not the entire class, then only the holders of those series whose rights would be affected shall together be considered a separate class for purposes of this section.

(b) Notwithstanding shareholder authorization and at any time prior to the filing of the certificate of merger or consolidation, the plan of merger or consolidation may be abandoned pursuant to a provision for such abandonment, if any, contained in the plan of merger or consolidation.