Articles Posted in Corporations

Delaware law permits a court to pierce the corporate veil of a company and hold its owners personally liable “where there is fraud or where [the corporation] is in fact a mere instrumentality or alter ego of its owner.” See, e.g., Geyer v. Ingersoll Publ’ns Co., 621 A.2d 784, 793 (Del.Ch.1992). In order to state a claim for piercing the corporate veil under the “alter ego” theory, a party must show (1) that the corporation and its principals sought to be held liable operated as a single economic entity, and (2) that an overall element of injustice or unfairness is present. See, e.g., Trevino v. Merscorp, Inc., 583 F.Supp.2d 521, 528 (D. Del. 2008) (applying Delaware law). The fraud or injustice that must be demonstrated in order to pierce the corporate veil must be found in the principal’s use of the corporate form. See Mobil Oil Corp. v. Linear Films, Inc., 718 F. Supp. 260, 267 (1989); Blair v. Infineon Technologies AG, 720 F. Supp. 2d 462, 473 (D. Del. 2010).
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Generally, it is the rule that a corporate director is not personally liable for the misconduct of co-directors where he or she has not participated in the misconduct. See, e.g., Seale v. Citizens Sav. & Loan Ass’n, 806 F.2d 99 (6th Cir. 1986). Corporate officers and directors can only become personally liable if they directly authorize or actively participate in the wrongful or tortious conduct complained of by a third party. See, e.g., Taylor-Rush v. Multitech Corp., 217 Cal. App. 3d 103 (1990). In other words, directors ordinarily will not be held liable for wrongdoing over which they have no practical control. See, e.g., Myers & Chapman, Inc. v. Thomas G. Evans, Inc., 89 N.C. App. 41 (1988).
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