Also known as: enmasse · collectively · as a group
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
An adverbial phrase indicating that members of a group act or decide simultaneously as a single body. The phrase captures collective conduct in which individual participation merges into unified group action without separate sequential steps.
Fifty unit owners in the ForgeWorks industrial condominiums met and voted together to create Steel Dock Owners Association. Their simultaneous action supplied the majority required under the governing documents. The new association immediately assumed management of the shared loading docks and access road.
Several Boston banks filed a single lawsuit attacking the constitutionality of a state law restricting corporate political speech. Their coordinated filing presented the First Amendment claim as a unified group challenge. The Supreme Court addressed the banks' collective standing to assert the rights at issue.
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The entire board of Reynolds Investing Company submitted resignation letters on the same day. Their simultaneous departures left the corporation's negotiable securities without immediate oversight. A court later examined whether the group action breached fiduciary duties of care.
Multiple investors filed a consolidated securities-fraud complaint against Tellabs. Their joint pleading alleged that company statements were materially false when viewed collectively. The Supreme Court evaluated whether the group allegations met the required pleading standard.
Cede & Co. and other stockholders acting together demanded access to Technicolor's corporate books. Their unified demand triggered the board's duty to respond under Delaware law. The court assessed whether the collective request satisfied statutory prerequisites.
Revlon's directors met and unanimously authorized the sale of the company to a single bidder. Their simultaneous approval shifted the board's fiduciary focus from preserving the corporation to maximizing shareholder value. The Delaware Supreme Court reviewed the collective decision under enhanced scrutiny.
A majority of nondeveloper owners may act simultaneously to form an association when the declaration creates common rights but does not establish or forbid one. Their collective vote binds all owners once the association is properly organized.
Supporting sources
Simultaneous resignation of the entire board can expose directors to claims if it leaves corporate assets without protection. Courts examine whether the group action was taken with due regard for the risk of dissipation.
Supporting sources
When multiple plaintiffs allege fraud through a consolidated complaint, the court evaluates the allegations taken collectively to determine whether they raise a strong inference of scienter.
…The damage suffered results not from the deceit practiced on him alone but rather from the deceit practiced on the stockholders as a group. To hold that derivative actions are not within the sweep of the section would therefore be tantamount to a denial of private relief. Private enforcement of the proxy rules provides a…