| Belgium | Delaware | |||||||
| Shareholder Meetings | ||||||||
| An annual shareholders’ meeting will be held at such times and places as designated in the articles of association, or if not so designated, as determined in the notice for the meeting. | May be held at such time or place as designated in the certificate of incorporation or the bylaws, or if not so designated, as determined by the board of directors. | |||||||
| Special or extraordinary meetings of shareholders may be called by the board of directors or the statutory auditor (or liquidators, if appropriate) or must be called when one or more shareholders holding at least one-tenth of the share capital so demands. | Special meetings of the shareholders may be called by the board of directors or by such person or persons as may be authorized by the certificate of incorporation or by the bylaws. | |||||||
| In general, meetings must be held in Belgium. Extraordinary shareholders’ meeting before a Belgian notary public must be held in Belgium. | May be held within or without Delaware. | |||||||
Notice: | Notice: | |||||||
| Notices of meetings must contain the agenda items of the meeting and any proposed resolutions to be submitted at the meeting. One or more shareholders holding jointly 3% or more of a company’s capital may request items to be added to the agenda and submit proposed resolutions. | Whenever shareholders are required to take any action at a meeting, a written notice of the meeting shall be given which shall state the place, if any, date and hour of the meeting, and the means of remote communication, if any. | |||||||
| Notices of meetings must be published in the Belgian State Gazette, in another nationally published newspaper, and on the website of the company at least 30 days prior to the meeting date. Notices must be delivered by letter to the holders of registered shares, registered subscription rights and registered bonds and to directors and the statutory auditor at least 30 days prior to the meeting date. Meeting notices and related documentation, including board of directors and auditor reports, must be published on the company’s website. | Written notice shall be given not less than 10 nor more than 60 days before the meeting. | |||||||
| Shareholders’ Voting Rights | ||||||||
| Unless otherwise provided for in the articles of association of a company, shareholders may take action by written consent of all shareholders. | Any action required to be taken at a meeting of shareholders may be taken without a meeting if a consent for such action is in writing and is signed by shareholders having not fewer than the minimum number of votes that would be necessary to authorize or take such action at a meeting at which all shares entitled to vote thereon were present and voted. | |||||||
| Any person authorized to vote may authorize another person to act for him by proxy. | Any person authorized to vote may authorize another person or persons to act for him by proxy. | |||||||
| The articles of association may specify the number of shares required to constitute a quorum but in no event shall a quorum consist of less than 50% of the shares entitled to vote at a meeting. | For stock corporations, the certificate of incorporation or bylaws may specify the number of shares required to constitute a quorum but in no event shall a quorum consist of less than one-third of shares entitled to vote at a meeting. In the absence of such specifications, a majority of shares entitled to vote shall constitute a quorum. | |||||||
| When a quorum is once present to organize a meeting, it is not broken by the subsequent withdrawal of any shareholders. | When a quorum is once present to organize a meeting, it is not broken by the subsequent withdrawal of any shareholders. | |||||||
The Belgian Code of Companies and Associations does not provide for cumulative voting in the election of directors. | The certificate of incorporation may provide for cumulative voting in the election of directors. | |||||||
| Transactions with Significant Shareholders | ||||||||
Conflicts of interest procedures generally apply at the board level, not at the level of the shareholders. Save for certain exempted decisions or transactions, the Belgian Code of Companies and Associations provides for a special procedure when the board of directors has to decide on transactions between a listed company and a related party (excluding its subsidiaries). Subject to certain conditions, the procedure also applies to transactions between the listed company and subsidiaries of the listed company in which the controlling shareholder of the listed company (directly or indirectly) holds a certain ownership or economic interest. Prior to such decisions or transactions, the board of directors must appoint a special committee of three independent members of the board of directors, which, if deemed necessary, may be supported by one or more independent experts appointed by the special committee, which will assess the proposed decisions or transactions. The board is not obligated to follow the advice of the independent committee, however, in case the advice is deviated from, such deviations must be noted in the minutes of the meeting that decides on the matter. If a director is involved in the decision or transaction, such director may not participate in the deliberation or vote. If all directors are involved, the decision or the transaction will be submitted to the shareholders’ meeting. In addition, the statutory auditor of the company must assess the information in the advice of the independent committee and in the minutes. The company must make a public announcement at the latest at the time that the decision is adopted or the transaction is entered into, which must include certain details regarding the decision or transaction). The advice of the independent committee (and if applicable, the reasons for departing from it by the board) should be attached to the announcement, as well as the opinion of the statutory auditor. The annual report of the company must contain an overview of all announcements made during the financial year, with reference to the place where the announcements can be consulted. Following decisions or actions are exempt from this procedure: (i) common decisions or actions under conditions that are at arm’s length, (ii) decisions or actions that represent less than 1% of the company’s net assets, (iii) decisions or actions with respect to (certain components of) the remuneration of directors, members of a management body or persons in charge of the daily management and (iv) the acquisition or disposal of treasury shares, the distribution of interim dividends and capital increases in the framework of the authorized capital without restriction or suppression of the preferential subscription rights. Any director who has a direct or indirect personal financial interest in a decision or transaction within the powers of the board of directors must disclose this interest to the other directors before the board takes any action. The interested director must notify the statutory auditor of the conflict. The director may neither participate in the deliberation nor vote on the decision or transaction at issue. The company’s annual report must contain an excerpt from the minutes of the meeting of the board of directors describing the financial impact of the matter and justifying the decision of the board. The auditors’ report must contain descriptions of the financial impact on the company of each board decision regarding a director conflict of interest. | Subject to certain exceptions and conditions, a corporation may not enter into a business combination with an interested shareholder for a period of three years from the time the person became an interested shareholder without prior approval from shareholders holding at least 66 2/3% of the corporation’s outstanding voting stock which is not owned by such interested shareholder. | |||||||
| Merger or Consolidation | ||||||||
Any two or more companies may merge into a single company pursuant to a merger proposal drafted by the management bodies of the concerned companies and upon the approval of the shareholders of each of the merging companies at their respective extraordinary shareholders’ meeting. The merger proposal must be filed for deposit by each company involved in the merger at the court registry of the enterprise court where its registered office is established, and must be published in the Belgian State Gazette. Filing shall take place at the latest six weeks prior to the resolution to merge at the shareholders’ meetings. At each of the meetings, a quorum representing at least half of the capital of the company is required. If such quorum is not achieved at a first meeting, a second meeting may be convened to which no quorum applies. The merger is approved if 75% of the votes cast are in favor. | Any two or more corporations existing under the laws of the state may merge into a single corporation pursuant to a board resolution and upon the majority vote by shareholders of each constituent corporation at an annual or special meeting. | |||||||
The management body of a company is authorized to contribute or transfer a branch of activity, and the attached assets and liabilities, to another company for a consideration consisting exclusively of shares of the acquiring company in case of a contribution or cash in case of a transfer, without being dissolved. The management bodies of the contributing and acquiring company shall draw up draft terms of contribution of a branch of activities in an authentic or private deed. The shareholders’ meeting of a company is authorized to contribute or transfer all its assets and liabilities to one or more existing or new companies for a consideration exclusively consisting of shares of the acquiring company or companies in case of a contribution or cash in case of a transfer, without being dissolved, at the proposal of the management body of the contributing company. The management bodies of the contributing and acquiring company shall draw up draft terms of contribution of a universality in an authentic or private deed. At the shareholders’ meeting, a quorum representing at least half of the capital of the company is required. If such quorum is not achieved at a first meeting, a second meeting may be convened to which no quorum applies. The contribution of a universality is approved if 75% of the votes cast are in favor. | Every corporation may at any meeting of the board sell, lease or exchange all or substantially all of its property and assets as its board deems expedient and for the best interests of the corporation when so authorized by a resolution adopted by the holders of a majority of the outstanding stock of the corporation entitled to vote. | |||||||
Subject to certain conditions, where an acquiring company owns 90% or more, but not all, of the shares and other securities conferring the right to vote in the company being acquired, the shareholders’ meeting of the acquiring company must not approve the merger and the change in the number of shares in the acquiring company and, where appropriate, its capital as a result of the merger. In this case, the management body of the acquiring company shall have the power to decide whether to authorize the merger and to amend the number of shares and, where appropriate, the capital of the acquiring company as a result of the merger. | Any corporation owning at least 90% of the outstanding shares of each class of another corporation may merge the other corporation into itself and assume all of its obligations without the vote or consent of shareholders; however, in case the parent corporation is not the surviving corporation, the proposed merger shall be approved by a majority of the outstanding stock of the parent corporation entitled to vote at a duly called shareholder meeting. | |||||||
| Any mortgage or pledge of a company’s property and assets may be authorized without the vote or consent of shareholders, except to the extent that the articles of association provide otherwise. | Any mortgage or pledge of a corporation’s property and assets may be authorized without the vote or consent of shareholders, except to the extent that the certificate of incorporation otherwise provides. | |||||||
| Directors | ||||||||
| The board of directors must consist of at least three members, except in the event that there are no more than two shareholders, in which case the board of directors may consist of two members. | The board of directors must consist of at least one member. | |||||||
| Number of directors shall be fixed in a manner provided in the articles of association. If no number is specified therein, the number of directors is decided at a shareholders’ meeting in accordance with the provisions of the articles of association on this matter, if any. Any deviation from a stipulated minimum or maximum number of directors may only be made by amendment of the articles of association. | The number of board members shall be fixed by, or in a manner provided by, the bylaws, unless the certificate of incorporation fixes the number of directors, in which case a change in the number shall be made only by an amendment to the certificate of incorporation. If the number of directors is fixed by the certificate of incorporation, a change in the number shall be made only by an amendment of the certificate. | |||||||
| The board of directors shall have the power to carry out all acts necessary or useful to achieve the object of the company, save for the powers reserved to the shareholders’ meeting by law. Directors have a fundamental duty to exercise their mandate in the best interests of the company, which also includes the collective financial interests of the company’s shareholders. | The business and affairs of a corporation are managed by or under the direction of its Board of Directors. In exercising their powers, directors are charged with a fiduciary duty of care to protect the interests of the corporation and a fiduciary duty of loyalty to act in the best interests of its shareholders. | |||||||
Removal: | Removal: | |||||||
| Any or all of the directors may be removed, with or without cause, by the holders of a majority of the shares entitled to vote unless the articles of association otherwise provides. | Any or all of the directors may be removed, with or without cause, by the holders of a majority of the shares entitled to vote unless the certificate of incorporation otherwise provides. | |||||||
The Belgian Code of Companies and Associations does not provide for classified boards. | In the case of a classified board, shareholders may effect removal of any or all directors only for cause. | |||||||
| Indemnification of Directors and Officers | ||||||||
The liability of a member of a management body or director in charge of the daily management may not be limited beyond the maximum cap on liability of 12 million euro per fact or set of facts that may give rise to liability, regardless of the number of plaintiffs or claims. The maximum amounts shall apply to all persons referred to in the first sentence together. The limitation of liability shall not apply in the case of a minor error which occurs more frequently than accidentally, a serious error, or fraudulent intent or intent to damage on the part of the person claimed to be liable. The company, its subsidiaries or the entities controlled by it may not exonerate or indemnify in advance the persons referred to in the first subparagraph from their liability towards the company or third parties. Any provision in the articles of association, in an agreement or unilateral expression of intent that states the contrary shall be considered as nonexistent. | A corporation may indemnify a director or officer of the corporation against expenses (including attorneys’ fees), judgments, fines and amounts paid in settlement actually and reasonably incurred in defense of an action, suit or proceeding by reason of such position if (i) such director or officer acted in good faith and in a manner he reasonably believed to be in or not opposed to the best interests of the corporation and (ii) with respect to any criminal action or proceeding, such director or officer had no reasonable cause to believe his conduct was unlawful. | |||||||
| Dissenters’ Rights of Appraisal | ||||||||
| No such rights are provided for under Belgian law. | Appraisal rights shall be available for the shares of any class or series of stock of a corporation in a merger or consolidation, subject to limited exceptions, such as a merger or consolidation of corporations listed on a national securities exchange in which listed stock is offered for consideration is (i) listed on a national securities exchange or (ii) held of record by more than 2,000 holders. | |||||||
| Shareholder’s Derivative Actions | ||||||||
An actio mandati, a derivative suit instituted on behalf of a company by its shareholders against the company’s directors for breaches of the law, the articles of association or faults in their management are generally available to shareholders. The decision to bring a suit must be made by the vote at a shareholders’ meeting of a simple majority unless a company’s articles of association provide differently. | In any derivative suit instituted by a shareholder of a corporation, it shall be averred in the complaint that the plaintiff was a shareholder of the corporation at the time of the transaction of which he complains or that such shareholder’s stock thereafter devolved upon such shareholder by operation of law. | |||||||
| Minority shareholders are permitted to bring a suit against the company’s directors on behalf of the company provided that (i) such shareholders jointly hold at least 1% of the outstanding shares of the company or hold at least EUR 1,250,000.00 of the company’s capital on the date on which release from liability is granted to a director and (ii) the shareholders instituting the suit voted against the release from liability, abstained from voting or were not present at the relevant meeting at which a director’s release from liability was decided. | Other requirements regarding derivative suits have been created by judicial decision, including that a shareholder may not bring a derivative suit unless he or she first demands that the corporation sue on its own behalf and that demand is refused (unless it is shown that such demand would have been futile). | |||||||