There are two major reasons for Delaware’s dominance of the corporate incorporation business. One reason is the bi-partisan political consensus in Delaware to keep the Delaware corporation statute modern and up-to-date, and to rely on Delaware’s corporate law specialists for advice in how to do this. As a result, law students at every law school in the United States study the Delaware corporation statute and the decisions of Delaware courts interpreting that law.
Corporations want to operate under modern laws that clearly spell out what they can and cannot do. But other states could enact such laws, or simply copy Delaware’s. So the Delaware corporation statute can’t by itself account for Delaware’s success in attracting corporate incorporations.
The other major reason corporations choose to incorporate in Delaware is the quality of Delaware courts and judges. Delaware has a special court, the Court of Chancery, to rule on corporate law disputes without juries. Corporate cases do not get stuck on dockets behind the multitude of non-corporate cases. Instead, Delaware corporations can expect their legal disputes to be addressed promptly and expertly by judges who specialize in corporate law.
Part of the bi-partisan political consensus in Delaware is to appoint and confirm the best qualified corporate law experts to the Court of Chancery. And part of the legal culture in Delaware is to honor appointment to the Court of Chancery as the highest and most respected form of public service.
Other states can, and some have tried, to create similar courts dedicated to resolving corporate disputes. They, too, can resolve to appoint only their best legal experts to these courts. But they won’t have the large body of Delaware case law, court rulings, generated over many years that provide both guidance and predictability to Delaware corporations, lawyers, and judges.
