Delaware § 3816 Derivative actions

Delaware Statutes

§ 3816 — Derivative actions

Delaware § 3816

JurisdictionDelaware

Title12

PartFiduciary Relations

Ch. 38TREATMENT OF DELAWARE STATUTORY TRUSTS

Subch.Domestic Statutory Trusts

This text of Delaware § 3816 (Derivative actions) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Delaware primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook

Del. Code tit. 12, § 3816 (2026).

Text

(a)A beneficial owner may bring an action in the Court of Chancery in the right of a statutory trust to recover a judgment in its favor if persons with authority to do so have refused to bring the action or if an effort to cause those persons to bring the action is not likely to succeed.

(b)In a derivative action, the plaintiff must be a beneficial owner at the time of bringing the action and:

(1)At the time of the transaction of which the plaintiff complains; or

(2)Plaintiff’s status as a beneficial owner had devolved upon plaintiff by operation of law or pursuant to the terms of the governing instrument of the statutory trust from a person who was a beneficial owner at the time of the transaction.

(c)In a derivative action, the complaint shall set forth with particularity the ef

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(a) A beneficial owner may bring an action in the Court of Chancery in the right of a statutory trust to recover a judgment in its favor if persons with authority to do so have refused to bring the action or if an effort to cause those persons to bring the action is not likely to succeed.

(b) In a derivative action, the plaintiff must be a beneficial owner at the time of bringing the action and:

(1) At the time of the transaction of which the plaintiff complains; or

(2) Plaintiff’s status as a beneficial owner had devolved upon plaintiff by operation of law or pursuant to the terms of the governing instrument of the statutory trust from a person who was a beneficial owner at the time of the transaction.

(c) In a derivative action, the complaint shall set forth with particularity the effort, if any, of the plaintiff to secure initiation of the action by the persons with authority to do so, or the reasons for not making the effort.

(d) If a derivative action is successful, in whole or in part, or if anything is received by a statutory trust as a result of a judgment, compromise or settlement of any such action, the Court may award the plaintiff reasonable expenses, including reasonable attorneys’ fees. If anything is so received by the plaintiff, the Court shall make such award of plaintiff’s expenses payable out of those proceeds and direct plaintiff to remit to the statutory trust the remainder thereof, and if those proceeds are insufficient to reimburse plaintiff’s reasonable expenses, the Court may direct that any such award of plaintiff’s expenses or a portion thereof be paid by the statutory trust.

(e) A beneficial owner’s right to bring a derivative action may be subject to such additional standards and restrictions, if any, as are set forth in the governing instrument of the statutory trust, including, without limitation, the requirement that beneficial owners owning a specified beneficial interest in the statutory trust join in the bringing of the derivative action.

Legislative History

67 Del. Laws, c. 297, § 8 ; 68 Del. Laws, c. 404, §§ 12, 13, 14 ; 70 Del Laws, c. 186,, § 1; 73 Del. Laws, c. 329, § 1 ; 78 Del. Laws, c. 280, §§ 15, 16