Administrateur désigné: l'impact de l'actionnariat gouvernemental

La situation des administrateurs désignés est, tant en fait qu'en droit, des plus inconfortables. Ils sont soumis, d'une part, aux pressions des actionnaires les ayant élu et, d'autre part, assujettis au devoir de loyauté qui leur commande d'agir dans l'intérêt de la société. Dans un article publié il y a environ 2 ans dans les Développements récents en litige commercial (disponible ici), Bastien Gauthier et moi explorions les enjeux juridiques associés aux administrateurs désignés par des investisseurs institutionnels. Le moins que l'on puisse dire, c'est que la question s'était avérée aussi complexe que la réponse...

L'arrivée du gouvernement dans l'actionnariat de sociétés nord-américaines implique l'arrivée d'administrateurs désignés par cet actionnaire bien particulier. Comme le note le Business Law Prof Blog (ici), leur situation risque d'être fort peu enviable:

Vice Chancellor Lamb of the Delaware Chancery Court noted recently in a pubic speech that government director nominees "should be treated like anyone else (other directors)" when fidicuiary duty standards are in issue. This is the tip of the iceberg, of course. The statement is a reaffirmation that the directors will be responsible to all shareholders, not just the government, in their board actions. This will test government nominees ability to answer to both the government (which may have objectives other than a firm's profits in mind) and to equity investors (who are primarily interested in profits). But liability will be another matter. Can the director nominees be personally liable? They are subject to the court's injunctive powers, but are they subject to damages for official actions? Their immunity as government actors will be tested. Second, is the government as prinicipal liable for the nominees actions that may injure other shareholders? The hazy area of liability of controlling shareholder for the actions of borad nominees, not yet fully developed in the case law, will be in issue as well the sovering immunity of the government itself? Has the government waived its liability for the actions of the nominees? (See, e.g., the Federal Tort Claims Act). Plaintiff's lawyers will be busy, as the government is an obvious potential deep pocket in shareholder derivative actions. I would suggest to all government director nominees that, before they accept the position, they get good advice on their personal exposure to private lawsuits.