Finance Final

cumulative voting

a procedure in which a shareholder may cast all votes for one member of the board of directors (directors elected all at ones) KEY: permits minority participation (you can distribute all of your votes however you want)

staggered elections

common practice where only a fraction of directorship (often 1/3) are up for election at a time 1. makes it more difficult for a minority to elect a director bc there are fewer directors to be elected at one time 2. makes takeover attempts less likely to be successful bc more difficult to vote in majority of new directors -->also provides continuity on board ("institutional memory")

straight voting

directors elected one at a time (only way to guarantee seat is by having majority shares)

common stock

equity without priority for dividends or in bankruptcy

shareholder rights

exclusive right to elect directors (one share=one vote)