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Pourquoi choisir le Delaware pour s’enregistrer ?

Robert Anderson publie un intéressant article sur SSRN qui traite du pourquoi s’enregistrer au Delaware quand on est une société par actions : Anderson, Robert, The Delaware Trap: An Empirical Study of Incorporation Decisions (February 27, 2017). Le chercheur nous offre une réponse pour le moins surprenante !

 

The findings have important implications for the state “race-to-the-top” debate in corporate law. At a minimum the results in this Article make it clear that the choice of legal representation is an important missing variable in models of incorporation decisions. The fact that the choice of law firms drives the jurisdictional choice has far broader implications. If law firms drive the jurisdictional choice they may steer companies toward states that serve the law firms’ own interests without regard to the quality of legal rules or the needs of the client. When the state chosen is Delaware, as it often is, there are few alternative jurisdictions that shareholders and managers can agree on. As a result, companies inadvertently fall into a “governance trap” from which reincorporation out of state is nearly impossible.

 

Comme le souligne un article du Wall Street Journal (« A ‘Delaware Trap’ for Companies », 7 mai 2017), on est loin des théories des courses au sommet ou vers le bas !

 

There have long been two competing theories on what motivates companies’ incorporation decisions. The “race to the bottom” theory holds that states compete by making rules that favor company insiders at the expense of corporations and their shareholders.

The “race to the top” theory, in contrast, suggests that market constraints prevent such favoritism, and that states instead compete to provide efficient legal rules that enhance shareholder value.

But Dr. Anderson examined regulatory filings related to raising private capital, and concluded that it is all about the company’s choice of law firm near the time of founding.

 

À la prochaine…

Ivan Tchotourian