(a) Any court of record having equity jurisdiction in the county where a corporation‘s principal office (or, if none in this state, its registered office) is located may remove a director of the corporation from office in a proceeding commenced either by the corporation or by its shareholders holding at least ten percent (10%) of the outstanding shares of any class if the court finds that:

Terms Used In Tennessee Code 48-18-109

  • Class: when used with reference to membership interests, means a category of membership interests that differs in one (1) or more rights or preferences from another category of membership interests of the LLC. See Tennessee Code 48-202-101
  • 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.
  • Court: includes every court and judge having jurisdiction in the case. See Tennessee Code 48-202-101
  • Defendant: In a civil suit, the person complained against; in a criminal case, the person accused of the crime.
  • Interest: means either or both of the following rights under the organic law of an unincorporated entity:
    (A) The right to receive distributions from the entity either in the ordinary course or upon liquidation. See Tennessee Code 48-11-201
  • Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
  • Principal office: means the office (in or out of this state) so designated in the annual report where the principal executive offices of a domestic or foreign corporation are located. See Tennessee Code 48-11-201
  • Proceeding: includes civil suit and criminal, administrative, and investigatory action. See Tennessee Code 48-202-101
  • Record: means information that is inscribed on a tangible medium or that is stored in an electronic or other medium and is retrievable in a perceivable form. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
  • State: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes the District of Columbia and the several territories of the United States. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
(1) The director engaged in fraudulent or dishonest conduct, or gross abuse of authority or discretion, with respect to the corporation; and
(2) Removal is in the best interest of the corporation.
(b) The court that removes a director may bar the director from reelection for a period prescribed by the court.
(c) If shareholders commence a proceeding under subsection (a), they shall make the corporation a party defendant.