Code Section

9243.  

(a) Except as provided in subdivision (b), for the purpose of this section, a self-dealing transaction means a transaction to which the corporation is a party and in which one or more of its directors has a material financial interest and which does not meet the requirements of paragraph (1), (2), (3), or (4) of subdivision (d). Such a director is an “interested director” for the purpose of this section.

(b) This section does not apply to any of the following:

(1) An action of the board fixing the compensation of a director as a director or officer of the corporation or making any loan of money or property to, or guaranteeing the obligation of, any director or officer.

(2) A transaction which is part of a public, charitable or religious program of the corporation if it (A) is approved or authorized by the corporation in good faith and without unjustified favoritism, and (B) results in a benefit to one or more directors or their families because they are in the class of persons intended to be benefited by the public, charitable or religious program.

(3) A transaction, of which the interested director or directors have no actual knowledge, and which does not exceed the lesser of 1 percent of the gross receipts of the corporation for the preceding fiscal year or one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000).

(c) Any of the following may bring an action in the superior court of the proper county for the remedies specified in subdivision (h):

(1) The corporation, or a member asserting the right in the name of the corporation; however, for the purpose of this paragraph the provisions of Section 5710 shall apply to the action.

(2) A director of the corporation.

(3) An officer of the corporation.

(4) Any person authorized by the bylaws to bring an action.

(d) In any action brought under subdivision (c) the remedies specified in subdivision (h) shall not be granted if:

(1) The Attorney General, or the court in an action in which the Attorney General is an indispensable party, has approved the transaction before or after it was consummated; or

(2) The transaction is approved or ratified in good faith by the members (Section 5034) other than the directors, after notice and disclosure to the members of the material facts concerning the transaction and the director’s interest in the transaction; or

(3) The following facts are established:

(A) The corporation entered into the transaction for its own benefit or for the benefit of the religious organization;

(B) The transaction was fair and reasonable as to the corporation or was in furtherance of its religious purposes at the time the corporation entered into the transaction;

(C) Prior to consummating the transaction or any part thereof, the board authorized or approved the transaction in good faith by a vote of a majority of the directors then in office without counting the vote of the interested director or directors, and with knowledge of the material facts concerning the transaction and the director’s interest in the transaction. Except as provided in paragraph (4), action by a committee of the board shall not satisfy this paragraph; and

(D) (i) Prior to authorizing or approving the transaction, the board considered and in good faith determined after reasonable investigation under the circumstances that either the corporation could not have obtained a more advantageous arrangement with reasonable effort under the circumstances or the transaction was in furtherance of the corporation’s religious purposes or (ii) in fact, either the corporation could not have obtained a more advantageous arrangement with reasonable effort under the circumstances or the transaction was in furtherance of the corporation’s religious purposes; or

(4) The following facts are established:

(A) A committee or person authorized by the board approved the transaction in a manner consistent with the standards set forth in paragraph (3).

(B) It was not reasonably practicable to obtain approval of the board prior to entering into the transaction; and

(C) The board, after determining in good faith that the conditions of subparagraphs (A) and (B) were satisfied, ratified the transaction at its next meeting by a vote of the majority of the directors then in office without counting the vote of the interested director or directors.

(e) Except as provided in subdivision (f), an action under subdivision (c) or Section 9230 shall be commenced within two years after written notice setting forth the material facts of the transaction is filed with the Attorney General in accordance with such regulations, if any, as the Attorney General may adopt or if no such notice is filed, five years after the cause of action has accrued.

(f) In any action for breach of an obligation of the corporation owed to an interested director, where the obligation arises from a self-dealing transaction which has not been approved as provided in subdivision (d), the court may, by way of offset only, make any order authorized by subdivision (h), notwithstanding the expiration of the applicable period specified in subdivision (e).

(g) Interested directors may be counted in determining the presence of a quorum at a meeting of the board which authorizes, approves or ratifies a contract or transaction.

(h) If a self-dealing transaction has taken place, the interested director or directors shall do such things and pay such damages as in the discretion of the court will provide an equitable and fair remedy to the corporation, taking into account any benefit received by the corporation and whether the interested director or directors acted in good faith and with intent to further the best interest of the corporation. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, the court may order the director to do any or all of the following:

(1) Account for any profits made from the transaction, and pay them to the corporation.

(2) Pay the corporation the value of the use of any of its property used in the transactions.

(3) Return or replace any property lost to the corporation as a result of the transaction, together with any income or appreciation lost to the corporation by reason of the transaction, or account for any proceeds of sale of the property, and pay the proceeds to the corporation together with interest at the legal rate.

The court may award prejudgment interest to the extent allowed in Sections 3287 and 3288 of the Civil Code. In addition, the court may, in its discretion, grant exemplary damages for a fraudulent or malicious violation of this section.