Oregon Statutes 65.391 – Authority to indemnify
(1) Except as provided in subsection (4) of this section, a corporation may indemnify an individual against liability incurred in a proceeding to which the individual was made a party because the individual is or was a director if:
Terms Used In Oregon Statutes 65.391
- Articles of incorporation: means the articles of incorporation described in ORS § 65. See Oregon Statutes 65.001
- Bylaws: means a set of provisions for managing and regulating a corporation's affairs that the corporation must adopt under ORS § 65. See Oregon Statutes 65.001
- Conviction: A judgement of guilt against a criminal defendant.
- 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.
- Corporation: means a domestic corporation or a foreign corporation. See Oregon Statutes 65.001
- Director: means an individual who acts as a member of the board of directors, who has a right to vote on questions concerning the management and regulation of a corporation's affairs and who is:
(a) An appointed director;
(b) A designated director; or
(c) A director elected by the incorporators, directors or members. See Oregon Statutes 65.001
- Employee: means an individual that a corporation employs, including an officer or director whom the corporation employs with compensation for services beyond the services of board membership. See Oregon Statutes 65.001
- Indemnification: In general, a collateral contract or assurance under which one person agrees to secure another person against either anticipated financial losses or potential adverse legal consequences. Source: FDIC
- Individual: means a natural person, including the guardian of an incompetent individual. See Oregon Statutes 65.001
- Nolo contendere: No contest-has the same effect as a plea of guilty, as far as the criminal sentence is concerned, but may not be considered as an admission of guilt for any other purpose.
- Plea: In a criminal case, the defendant's statement pleading "guilty" or "not guilty" in answer to the charges, a declaration made in open court.
- Proceeding: means a civil, criminal, administrative or investigatory action. See Oregon Statutes 65.001
- Settlement: Parties to a lawsuit resolve their difference without having a trial. Settlements often involve the payment of compensation by one party in satisfaction of the other party's claims.
(a) The conduct of the individual was in good faith;
(b) The individual reasonably believed that the individual’s conduct was in the best interests of the corporation, or at least was not opposed to the corporation’s best interests; and
(c) In the case of a criminal proceeding, the individual did not have reasonable cause to believe the conduct of the individual was unlawful.
(2) A director’s conduct with respect to an employee benefit plan for a purpose the director reasonably believed to be in the interests of the participants in and beneficiaries of the plan is conduct that satisfies the requirements of subsection (1)(b) of this section.
(3) Terminating a proceeding by judgment, order, settlement or conviction or upon a plea of nolo contendere or the equivalent of nolo contendere does not, of itself, determine that the director did not meet the standard of conduct described in this section.
(4) A corporation may not indemnify a director under this section in connection with:
(a) A proceeding by or in the right of the corporation in which the director was adjudged liable to the corporation; or
(b) A proceeding that charged the director with and adjudged the director liable for improperly receiving a personal benefit.
(5) Indemnification permitted under this section in connection with a proceeding by or in the right of the corporation is limited to reasonable expenses incurred in connection with the proceeding.
(6)(a) A corporation that provides indemnification to a director in accordance with the corporation’s articles of incorporation or bylaws may not amend the articles of incorporation or bylaws so as to eliminate or impair the director’s right to indemnification after an act or omission occurs that subjects the director to a proceeding or to liability for which the director seeks indemnification under the terms of the articles of incorporation or bylaws.
(b) Notwithstanding the prohibition set forth in paragraph (a) of this subsection, a corporation may eliminate or impair a director’s right to indemnification if at the time the act or omission occurred the corporation’s articles of incorporation or bylaws explicitly authorized the corporation to eliminate or impair the right after an act or omission occurs. [1989 c.1010 § 99; 2011 c.227 § 5]