(a) Property held in trust by a corporation or otherwise dedicated to a charitable purpose may not be diverted from its purpose by an amendment of its bylaws unless the corporation obtains an appropriate order of a court of competent jurisdiction to the extent required by and pursuant to the law of this state on cy pres or otherwise dealing with the nondiversion of charitable assets.
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Terms Used In Tennessee Code 48-60-206

  • Amendment: A proposal to alter the text of a pending bill or other measure by striking out some of it, by inserting new language, or both. Before an amendment becomes part of the measure, thelegislature must agree to it.
  • Assets: (1) The property comprising the estate of a deceased person, or (2) the property in a trust account.
  • Bylaws: means the code or codes of rules (other than the charter) adopted pursuant to chapters 51-68 of this title for the regulation or management of the affairs of the corporation irrespective of the name or names by which such rules are designated. See Tennessee Code 48-51-201
  • Charitable purpose: means a purpose that:
    (A) Would make a corporation operated exclusively for that purpose eligible to be exempt from taxation under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. See Tennessee Code 48-51-201
  • Corporation: A legal entity owned by the holders of shares of stock that have been issued, and that can own, receive, and transfer property, and carry on business in its own name.
  • Court: includes every court and judge having jurisdiction in the case. See Tennessee Code 48-202-101
  • Entity: includes the following, whether foreign or domestic: LLCs. See Tennessee Code 48-202-101
  • Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
  • Member: means a person reflected in the required records of an LLC as the owner of some governance rights of a membership interest of the LLC. See Tennessee Code 48-202-101
  • Person: includes individual and entity. See Tennessee Code 48-202-101
  • Property: includes both personal and real property. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
  • Public benefit corporation: means a domestic corporation which becomes by operation of law a public benefit corporation pursuant to §. See Tennessee Code 48-51-201
  • Reporter: Makes a record of court proceedings and prepares a transcript, and also publishes the court's opinions or decisions (in the courts of appeals).
  • State: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes the District of Columbia and the several territories of the United States. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
(b) Unless a corporation, after notifying the attorney general and reporter obtains an appropriate order of a court of competent jurisdiction under the law of this state on cy pres or otherwise dealing with the nondiversion of charitable assets, an amendment of its bylaws may not affect:

(1) Any restriction imposed upon property held by the corporation by virtue of any trust under which it holds that property; or
(2) The existing rights of persons other than its members.
(c) A person who is a member or otherwise affiliated with a public benefit corporation may not receive a direct or indirect financial benefit in connection with an amendment of the bylaws unless the person is itself a public benefit corporation or an unincorporated entity with a charitable purpose. This subsection (c) does not apply to the receipt of reasonable compensation for services rendered.
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