Title 10, Corporations

This chapter may be cited as the "North Dakota Publicly Traded Corporations Act".

For purposes of this chapter, unless the context otherwise requires: 1. "Beneficial owner", "owns beneficially", and similar terms have the same meaning as in the rules and regulations of the commission under section 13 of the Exchange Act. 2. "Commission" means the United States…

1. This chapter applies only to a publicly traded corporation meeting the definition of a "publicly traded corporation" in section 10-35-02 during such time as its articles state that it is governed by this chapter. 2. The existence of a provision of this chapter does not of itse…

1. Chapter 10-19.1 applies generally to all publicly traded corporations, except that the provisions of this chapter control over any inconsistent provision of chapter 10-19.1. 2. A publicly traded corporation is a "publicly held corporation" as that term is used in chapter 10-19…

1. Any shareholder of a publicly traded corporation may propose the adoption, amendment, or repeal of a bylaw. 2. Subdivision c of subsection 3 of section 10-19.1-31 shall not apply to a publicly traded corporation except that a provision of the articles or bylaws authorized by s…

1. The articles or bylaws of a publicly traded corporation may not fix a term for directors longer than one year. 2. The articles or bylaws of a publicly traded corporation may not stagger the terms of directors into groups whose terms end at different times. 3. The size of the b…

1. A publicly traded corporation may not require a shareholder or beneficial owner of shares to provide notice of an intention to nominate a candidate for election as a director except as provided in a provision of the articles or bylaws that satisfies the requirements of this se…

1. If a qualified shareholder provides notice of an intention to nominate one or more candidates for election to the board of directors that satisfies both section 10-35-07 and this section, the publicly traded corporation must: a. Include the name of each nominee and a statement…

1. After a quorum is established at a meeting of the shareholders of a publicly traded corporation at which directors are to be elected, the polls must be opened for the election of directors before the meeting may be recessed or adjourned. If the polls have not been previously c…

1. A shareholder of a publicly traded corporation who nominates one or more candidates for election as directors who are not nominated by management or the board of directors must be reimbursed by the corporation for the reasonable actual costs of solicitation of proxies incurred…

Neither the articles nor the bylaws of a publicly traded corporation may provide a quorum or voting requirement: 1. For the board or a committee of the board that is greater than a majority of the number of directors that would constitute the full board or committee assuming ther…

1. Unless directors are elected by consent in lieu of a regular meeting as provided in subsection 5 of section 10-35-09, a publicly traded corporation must hold a meeting of shareholders annually for the election of directors and the conduct of such other business as may be prope…

1. A publicly traded corporation shall hold a special meeting of shareholders upon the demand of its shareholders as provided in section 10-19.1-72, except that, regardless of the purpose for the meeting, the shareholders demanding the meeting must own beneficially ten percent or…

1. A publicly traded corporation may not require a shareholder or beneficial owner to provide notice of an intention to propose a matter for consideration or a vote at a regular meeting of shareholders except as provided in a provision of the article or bylaws that satisfies the …

1. A proposal of an amendment of the articles of a publicly traded corporation by a shareholder or shareholders under subsection 2 of section 10-19.1-19 need not include more than: a. The name of the shareholder or the names of the members of the group of shareholders; b. A state…

1. If the articles or bylaws of a publicly traded corporation have a provision for advance notice authorized by section 10-35-07 or 10-35-14, a regular meeting of shareholders of the corporation may not be convened unless the corporation has announced the date of the meeting in t…

1. An issuance by a publicly traded corporation of shares, or other securities convertible into or rights exercisable for shares, in a transaction or a series of integrated transactions, requires approval of the shareholders if the voting power of the shares that are issued or is…

Unless otherwise provided in the articles, a shareholder of a publicly traded corporation does not have the pre-emptive rights provided in section 10-19.1-65.

1. There must be a presiding officer at every meeting of the shareholders of a publicly traded corporation. The presiding officer must be appointed in the manner provided in the articles or bylaws or, in the absence of such a provision, by the board before the meeting or by the s…

1. An action required or permitted to be taken at a meeting of the shareholders of a publicly traded corporation may be taken without a meeting by one or more records signed by shareholders who own voting power equal to the voting power that would be required to take the same act…

Section 10-19.1-85 does not apply to a publicly traded corporation.

1. If a publicly traded corporation adopts, creates, or issues a poison pill without a vote of its shareholders authorizing that action, the poison pill must expire or be redeemed and will otherwise be of no further force or effect not later than the earlier of: a. One year after…

A poison pill adopted, created, or issued by a publicly traded corporation, with or without the approval of its shareholders, may not include a provision that limits in any way the power of the board of directors, as it may be constituted at any point in time, to take any action …

A poison pill adopted, created, or issued by a publicly traded corporation, with or without the approval of its shareholders, may not provide that beneficial ownership or announcement of an intention to seek beneficial ownership by a person or group of persons of shares equal to …

1. A provision of the articles or bylaws of a publicly traded corporation may restrict or prohibit the corporation from adopting, creating, or issuing a poison pill. Such a provision may provide for the effect it has on a poison pill in force at the time of the provision's adopti…

1. The articles or bylaws of a publicly traded corporation may not contain an antitakeover provision unless it has been approved by the required vote. 2. As used in this section: a. Except as provided in subdivision b, "antitakeover provision" means a provision that: (1) Would bl…

The provisions of this chapter and of chapter 10-19.1 must be liberally construed to protect and enhance the rights of shareholders in publicly traded corporations.

1. Instead of filing an annual report under section 10-19.1-146, each publicly traded corporation shall file under this section, within the time provided in section 10-35-29, an annual report setting forth: a. The name of the publicly traded corporation; b. A statement that it is…

1. Except for the first annual report and publicly traded corporation franchise fee, the annual report and publicly traded corporation franchise fee must be delivered to the secretary of state before December second of each year. The first annual report and payment of the publicl…

The publicly traded corporation franchise fee shall be a debt due from the publicly traded corporation to the state for which an action at law may be maintained after the same shall have been in arrears for a period of one month. The publicly traded corporation franchise fee shal…

1. The secretary of state shall charge and collect additional fees for late filing of the annual report and payment of the publicly traded corporation franchise fee as follows: a. Within ninety days after the date provided in subsection 1 of section 10-35-29, two hundred fifty do…

1. The secretary of state has the power and authority reasonably necessary to efficiently administer this chapter and to perform the duties imposed thereby. 2. The secretary of state may propound to any publicly traded corporation that is subject to this chapter and to any office…

Twenty percent of the fees received by the secretary of state for filing records of a publicly traded corporation as provided for in section 10-19.1-147 or this chapter must be deposited in the secretary of state's general services operating fund to pay the cost to administer thi…