合意公開收購股份前之資訊取得與揭露

實務在進行公開收購股份時，多為合意公開收購。於達成合意之前，公開收購人與被收購公司董事、股東間，往往有一段折衝往返之協商過程，倘公開收購人或股東有請公司提供資訊以為評估設定收購價格之需要，渠等是否有此權利？尚未見現行規定及學說實務有所著墨。我國公司法第210條雖賦予股東有閱覽簿冊之權利，惟該條僅准許股東閱覽歷屆股東會議事錄、資產負債表、股東名簿及公司債存根簿等資料，其中若非已依證券交易法所應公開之資料，即無助於股份價值之瞭解，顯有未足。本文觀察德拉瓦州公司法之規定並溯其淵源，認為股東得以公司資產權益所有人地位，根據公司董事及經理人所負有之受託義務，請求受領資訊瞭解其持股價值。另一方面，當公司董事擬將公司出售而與公開收購人進行協商時，經營階層將因所負之Revlon義務而應為股東追求最高出售價格，在此範圍內，公開收購人應得以請求公司提供資訊，作為決定收購價格之依據。透過對於受託義務概念之演繹，本文嘗試建構公開收購前之資訊請求制度，作為實務運作之參考。

關鍵字

公開收購；簿冊閱覽；資訊揭露義務；適當目的； Revlon義務

並列摘要

In practice, most tender offers are voluntary rather than hostile. Before reaching an agreement, there are inevitably negotiations between the buyer and the target company's management and/or its shareholders. If the buyer or the shareholder requests the target company to provide information to evaluate the sufficiency of the tender price, are they entitled to do so? Few discussions cover this issue. Article 210 of the Corporation Act entitles the shareholders to inspect the books and records, but such inspection right only allows them to inspect the shareholder meeting minutes, financial statements, shareholder roster and the counterfoil of corporate bonds issued by the corporation, which is obviously insufficient for the shareholders to understand the value of their shares. This article traces the origin of the relevant provision in the Delaware General Corporation Laws and argues that, based on the fiduciary duties of the directors and the officers, shareholders are entitled to the right of inspection in order to understand the value of their shares. On the other hand, in the event of sale of company, when the directors negotiate with the buyer, they are obligated to pursue the highest price available for the shareholders to fulfill their Revlon duty. Within the scope of Revlon duty, the buyer should also be entitled to request the company to provide information for the evaluation of tender offer price. This article proposes a mechanism of information inspection and disclosure at the pre-tender offer stage.