Under ERISA, ''employers'' must make all necessary contributions to multi-employer pension plans pursuant to the plans' terms or the terms of a collective bargaining agreement. Every employee benefit plan must have a funding procedure and fully explain how and under what circumstances payments are to be made to the plan. If these responsibilities are not carried out or carried out in an untimely manner, a civil enforcement action can be brought against the plan or the employer. An "employer" is defined as "any person acting directly as an employer, or indirectly in the interest of an employer, in relation to an employee benefit plan.
A corporate director has the duty to act in good faith in pursuit of the company's best interests and to use the care that an ordinary prudent person in a like position would use under similar circumstances. The Model Business Corporation Act implies that corporate officers have an even higher duty of care because they are intimately familiar with and knowledgeable about the corporation's activities and have better access to corporate information than directors have. Most jurisdictions recognize that high-ranking corporate officers have a fiduciary relationship with the corporation.
Broker dealers may make investment recommendations to investors only if the broker dealer first determines that the recommended investment would be suitable for the investor. Suitability depends upon the investor's tolerance for risk, other investments, income, net worth, financial requirements, and investment objectives.
Most jurisdictions recognize that directors have three basic fiduciary duties: the duty of care, the duty of loyalty, and the duty of obedience. The duty of obedience requires a director to act in furtherance of the business organization's goals and mission as stated in the articles of incorporation and bylaws.
The federal Clayton Act contains prohibitions against various specific anti-competitive practices and is designed to supplement the broad prohibitions of the Sherman Act against anti-competitive agreements and monopolization. Section 2 of the Clayton Act, 15 U.S.C.S. § 13, as amended by the Robinson-Patman Act, specifically prohibits discrimination in the price of commodities or in commissions, allowances, services, or facilities if such discrimination is anti-competitive.
