Chris Mercer author of “Buy-Sell Agreements for Baby Boomers Business Owners” addresses a very good question. Who owns the stock after the trigger event? After a trigger event, does the affected shareholders retain the rights, risks and privileges of the ownership, things like, voting, distribution, access to financial information, etc., or are their shares converted to another status, such as (example), the “pending sales of stock” status?
If the shares are converted into the new class or status, do they have the right to receive dividends, or interest while in that pending status, if so, who should be receiving it?
The agreement can also have a clause where the stock that is waiting to be purchased would convert to a “non-voting “status prior to being purchased.
There are many times a stockholder has signed personally for a corporate debt. The stockholder may desire to have the remaining stockholders make an effort to get the departing stockholder off the note, as they have ceased to be a stockholder.
The questions that Chris puts forth are legitimate issues and should be dealt with when business owners and their council set out to design a buy and sell agreement for the company.
Thank you, Chris Mercer, for bringing these topics to the forefront.
Over the years, many of the buy and sell agreements which I have reviewed over the years, do not address or mention these particular situations, and could create a void should the situation arise.
Check Chris Mercers publications. He puts out very good information that is useful to practitioners.
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