Edmund Polubinski, Jr., of the law firm Lyne, Woodworth & Evarts LLP in Boston Massachusetts, blogs at mass. close corporations about legal issues related to close corporations.  A “close corporation” has been defined as typified by (1) a small number of shareholders, (2) having no ready market for its stock and (3) having substantial majority shareholder participation in the management, direction and operation of the corporation. Because there is frequently dominance by the majority, oppression of minority shareholders can occur with disastrous results. A focus of the blog, therefore, will be shareholders’ fiduciary duty and shareholder disputes.   Closely allied with this is the whole area of succession planning.

Other issues of the close corporation will also be covered, such as IP protection, employee and executive compensation and other areas of interest to owners and management of small or emerging businesses.  In the post Great Recession and current novel coronavirus climate, financing the close corporation has been difficult.  Possible solutions will be discussed.

Although the focus is on Massachusetts corporations, Mr. Polubinski has either litigated oppression cases and has dealt with shareholder disputes in other states.  He is the author of Massachusetts Practice, Business Corporations with Forms, a legal treatise.

Ed is an avid fly-fisher and he took the photograph above while fishing the Big Wood River near Sun Valley, Idaho.

This blog was created to provide business owners, shareholders and others with authorative, accurate and informative information.  It is not formal legal advice nor does it create a lawyer/client relationship.  It may constitute advertising under the laws of Massachusetts or other jurisdictions.