Arkansas Code Annotated

Ark. Code Ann. § 4-27-640 (2026)

Distributions to shareholders

✓ current as of May 2026
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  1. A board of directors may authorize and the corporation may make distributions to its shareholders subject to restriction by the articles of incorporation and the limitation in subsection (c) of this section.
  2. If the board of directors does not fix the record date for determining shareholders entitled to a distribution (other than one involving a repurchase or reacquisition of shares), it is the date the board of directors authorizes the distribution.
  3. No distribution may be made if, after giving it effect:
    1. The corporation would not be able to pay its debts as they become due in the usual course of business; or
    2. The corporation's total assets would be less than the sum of its total liabilities plus (unless the articles of incorporation permit otherwise) the amount that would be needed, if the corporation were to be dissolved at the time of the distribution, to satisfy the preferential rights upon dissolution of shareholders whose preferential rights are superior to those receiving the distribution.
  4. The board of directors may base a determination that a distribution is not prohibited under subsection (c) of this section either on financial statements prepared on the basis of accounting practices and principles that are reasonable in the circumstances or on a fair valuation or other method that is reasonable in the circumstances.
  5. The effect of a distribution under subsection (c) of this section is measured:
    1. in the case of distribution by purchase, redemption, or other acquisition of the corporation's shares, as of the earlier of (i) the date money or other property is transferred or debt incurred by the corporation or (ii) the date the shareholder ceases to be a shareholder with respect to the acquired shares;
    2. in the case of any other distribution of indebtedness, as of the date the indebtedness is distributed; and
    3. in all other cases, as of (i) the date the distribution is authorized if the payment occurs within one hundred twenty (120) days after the date of authorization or (ii) the date the payment is made if it occurs more than one hundred twenty (120) days after the date of authorization.
  6. A corporation's indebtedness to a shareholder incurred by reason of a distribution made in accordance with this section is at parity with the corporation's indebtedness to its general, unsecured creditors except to the extent subordinated by agreement.
  7. If the articles of incorporation or bylaws of an investment company so provide, the board of directors may delegate to a committee of the board of directors, or to the officers of the corporation, the authority to determine the amount of, to declare, and to distribute dividends in accordance with the policies adopted by the board of directors.

History. Acts 1987, No. 958, § 64-616; 1989, No. 583, § 4.

Subchapter 7 — Shareholders

Effective Dates. Acts 1989, No. 583, § 8: Mar. 15, 1989. Emergency clause provided: “It is hereby found and determined by the General Assembly that present law has no provisions for registered investment companies; that such laws are needed to properly govern investment companies and to clarify the status of investment companies; and that adoption of Subchapter M of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is necessary to provide uniform tax laws on both the State and Federal levels for investment companies. Therefore, an emergency is hereby declared to exist and this act being necessary for the preservation of public peace, health, and safety shall be in full force and effect from and after its passage and approval.”

Acts 2007, No. 638, § 70: Sept. 1, 2007.

Part A: Meetings
Notes of Decisions
Cited in 1 case (1 in the last 5 years), 2025–2025 · leading case: Crain v. Crain, 2025 Ark. App. 122 (Ark. Ct. App. 2025).
Crain v. Crain, 2025 Ark. App. 122 (Ark. Ct. App. 2025). “§ 4-27-640 . Accordingly, Wales recommended that “RJC should take no action.”
Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.