The Business Judgment Rule as an Immunity Doctrine

The business judgment rule is a judicially created doctrine that protects directors from personal civil liability for the decisions they make on behalf of a corporation. In today’s era of corporate scandals, global financial meltdowns, and directorial malfeasance, it has become especially important in setting the bar for when directors are appropriately responsible to shareholders for their actions. Traditionally the business judgment rule has been regarded as a standard of liability, although it has never really been explored or enunciated as such. This view determines eligibility for business judgment rule protection of a directorial decision after an examination of certain preconditions. An alternate view has developed that posits the business judgment rule is actually an abstention doctrine, and should be applied automatically absent the establishment of the same preconditions as the liability standard approach, only to be used as nullifying factors, to shield directors from having to account. The difference between the two positions essentially comes down to the order of the requirements, and who has the burden of establishing the existence of the factors that would grant or deny business judgment rule protection. This Article disagrees with both of the above approaches, and instead explores the business judgment rule as a type of immunity by comparing it to selected public and private immunities. The policy underpinnings of the business judgment rule mirror those of immunities, as does the practical impact. This means that the business judgment rule, properly construed, would require the director to establish entitlement to protection by proving that all preconditions for application of the rule are met. Much of the confusion between the courts and circuits could be alleviated by approaching the business judgment rule as a type of immunity, where the procedures and philosophies are much more enunciated. This helps place the business judgment rule back as a crucial part in the balancing act between directorial autonomy and accountability, which is especially timely given the current economic climate

Honest Services Update: Directors’ Liability Concerns After Skilling and Black

This Article will set out the current law in the honest services area after a quick historical review for context. Then, civil standards and penalties for breach of a corporate officer or director\u27s fiduciary obligations will be outlined to give a more complete picture of what hazards officers and directors face when discharging their duties in a manner less than sufficient

2016 Research & Innovation Day Program

A one day showcase of applied research, social innovation, scholarship projects and activities.https://first.fanshawec.ca/cri_cripublications/1003/thumbnail.jp

Proceedings of the 3rd Biennial Conference of the Society for Implementation Research Collaboration (SIRC) 2015: advancing efficient methodologies through community partnerships and team science

It is well documented that the majority of adults, children and families in need of evidence-based behavioral health interventionsi do not receive them [1, 2] and that few robust empirically supported methods for implementing evidence-based practices (EBPs) exist. The Society for Implementation Research Collaboration (SIRC) represents a burgeoning effort to advance the innovation and rigor of implementation research and is uniquely focused on bringing together researchers and stakeholders committed to evaluating the implementation of complex evidence-based behavioral health interventions. Through its diverse activities and membership, SIRC aims to foster the promise of implementation research to better serve the behavioral health needs of the population by identifying rigorous, relevant, and efficient strategies that successfully transfer scientific evidence to clinical knowledge for use in real world settings [3]. SIRC began as a National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)-funded conference series in 2010 (previously titled the “Seattle Implementation Research Conference”; $150,000 USD for 3 conferences in 2011, 2013, and 2015) with the recognition that there were multiple researchers and stakeholdersi working in parallel on innovative implementation science projects in behavioral health, but that formal channels for communicating and collaborating with one another were relatively unavailable. There was a significant need for a forum within which implementation researchers and stakeholders could learn from one another, refine approaches to science and practice, and develop an implementation research agenda using common measures, methods, and research principles to improve both the frequency and quality with which behavioral health treatment implementation is evaluated. SIRC’s membership growth is a testament to this identified need with more than 1000 members from 2011 to the present.ii SIRC’s primary objectives are to: (1) foster communication and collaboration across diverse groups, including implementation researchers, intermediariesi, as well as community stakeholders (SIRC uses the term “EBP champions” for these groups) – and to do so across multiple career levels (e.g., students, early career faculty, established investigators); and (2) enhance and disseminate rigorous measures and methodologies for implementing EBPs and evaluating EBP implementation efforts. These objectives are well aligned with Glasgow and colleagues’ [4] five core tenets deemed critical for advancing implementation science: collaboration, efficiency and speed, rigor and relevance, improved capacity, and cumulative knowledge. SIRC advances these objectives and tenets through in-person conferences, which bring together multidisciplinary implementation researchers and those implementing evidence-based behavioral health interventions in the community to share their work and create professional connections and collaborations

The Business Judgment Rule as an Immunity Doctrine

The business judgment rule is a judicially created doctrine that protects directors from personal civil liability for the decisions they make on behalf of a corporation. In today’s era of corporate scandals, global financial meltdowns, and directorial malfeasance, it has become especially important in setting the bar for when directors are appropriately responsible to shareholders for their actions. Traditionally the business judgment rule has been regarded as a standard of liability, although it has never really been explored or enunciated as such. This view determines eligibility for business judgment rule protection of a directorial decision after an examination of certain preconditions. An alternate view has developed that posits the business judgment rule is actually an abstention doctrine, and should be applied automatically absent the establishment of the same preconditions as the liability standard approach, only to be used as nullifying factors, to shield directors from having to account. The difference between the two positions essentially comes down to the order of the requirements, and who has the burden of establishing the existence of the factors that would grant or deny business judgment rule protection. This Article disagrees with both of the above approaches, and instead explores the business judgment rule as a type of immunity by comparing it to selected public and private immunities. The policy underpinnings of the business judgment rule mirror those of immunities, as does the practical impact. This means that the business judgment rule, properly construed, would require the director to establish entitlement to protection by proving that all preconditions for application of the rule are met. Much of the confusion between the courts and circuits could be alleviated by approaching the business judgment rule as a type of immunity, where the procedures and philosophies are much more enunciated. This helps place the business judgment rule back as a crucial part in the balancing act between directorial autonomy and accountability, which is especially timely given the current economic climate

Honest Services Update: Directors’ Liability Concerns After Skilling and Black

This Article will set out the current law in the honest services area after a quick historical review for context. Then, civil standards and penalties for breach of a corporate officer or director\u27s fiduciary obligations will be outlined to give a more complete picture of what hazards officers and directors face when discharging their duties in a manner less than sufficient

Acceptability of nutritious children’s foods developed for markets in Sierra Leone

Sierra Leone has one of the highest levels of malnutrition and child mortality worldwide due, in part, to the micronutrient deficiencies that result from a lack of diet diversity and food accessibility. To address these challenges, nutrient-dense, affordable snack foods are being developed for children in Sierra Leone. The products in development are similar to foods that are currently eaten in the region, such that they could easily be integrated into children’s diets. The two lead products are a groundnut butter pudding for children six months to two years of age and a sweet potato based muffin for children two to five years of age. The objectives of this study are (1) to determine the dietary habits of children in Sierra Leone between six months and five years of age, and (2) to perform acceptability testing with the pudding and the muffins. In total, 428 mother-child pairs participated in the study, which was performed in 2019 in multiple locations in the vicinity of Makeni, Sierra Leone. The mothers reported that the most common snacks for children six months to two years of age were porridge and rice, while the most common snacks for two to five year olds were rice and biscuits. These findings confirmed that the pudding and muffins would be familiar and appealing to young children. Moreover, the test results demonstrated that both the pudding and the muffins were acceptable in terms of taste and texture. Based upon these findings, the best formulations were selected, then further modified to reach the target levels of each micronutrient (vitamin A, iron, and zinc) in a single serving size. The estimated cost of each product is 1500 leones ($0.15 USD), making it affordable for Sierra Leoneans. Future steps are to collaborate with local entrepreneurs to sell these products in the markets where people normally shop. This study was approved by the District Medical Officer of Health in Sierra Leone and performed in collaboration with World Hope International, an NGO with a facility in Makeni, Sierra Leone

Rapid-fire Ed Tech Forum #2: Seven Presenters Offer Seven Slides in Seven Minutes

Seven Colleague to Colleague presenters will share in seven minutes information about a useful app, website, concept or tool using only seven slides. This rapid-fire exposure to information aimed at instructional designers, subject matter experts and ed tech specialists will include the following seven-minute segments: 1. Using Venngage to create infographics with Valerie Mann 2. Aligning key development processes to scaffold the course development process for subject matter experts (SME) with Mary Burkart 3. Understanding Accessibility: A Guide for Faculty with Laura Widenor and Deborah Goins 4. Using Popplet as a mind mapping tool with Lori McMillan 5. Exploring Flipgrid for student engagement and formative assessment at the high school level (college too) with Alauna Thornton 6. Understanding the advantages and disadvantages of certifications at the community college level with Miguel Garcia-Uchofen 7. Exploring Snag-It Pro for screen capture and screen recording with Lisa Schmid