Nice discussion of a shareholder’s rights to review a corporation’s books and records, by K&L Gates. The article is here. The basic rule is that a shareholder may review books and records if he has a “proper purpose.” The article discusses the recent case of Haque v. Tesla Motors, Inc., C.A. No. 12651-VCS (Feb. 2, 2017) where the Delaware Court refused to order Tesla to turnover certain records saying :
The Court acknowledged that use of corporate records to investigate potential wrongdoing or mismanagement at a company is a proper purpose under Section 220. However, before compelling production of records in such cases, the Plaintiff must present evidence to establish a “credible basis” from which the Court can infer that mismanagement, waste, or wrongdoing may have occurred.
Prof Hayes UWLA 