DOVER, Del. — Delaware lawmakers are making a bipartisan push to keep corporations in the state as some major companies consider relocating their legal homes elsewhere.
Long known as a business-friendly state, Delaware leads the nation in corporate incorporations, offering legal and financial advantages. However, some companies now cite a shifting legal climate as a reason to leave.
Tesla, led by CEO Elon Musk, moved its incorporation from Delaware to Texas last year after Musk lost a lawsuit in Delaware’s Court of Chancery. He later posted on his platform X, “Never incorporate your company in the state of Delaware.”
The move is part of a broader trend, with companies such as SpaceX, TripAdvisor, and Dropbox also leaving or considering leaving the state. Critics of Delaware’s business environment have pointed to what they call “corruption, bias, and overreach within the Delaware Court of Chancery.”
In response, a bipartisan group of state lawmakers introduced a bill Monday aimed at clarifying legal protections for corporate stockholders. House Minority Leader Rep. Tim Dukes, R-Laurel, is a co-sponsor of the bill.
“It solidifies in code the longstanding values of Delaware law,” Dukes said. “That’s why people come from all over the world to incorporate in Delaware. We don’t take that for granted, but we take it seriously and want to protect that.”
Dukes emphasized the economic importance of corporate incorporations to the state.
“The Chancery Court in Delaware is so highly respected, and we don’t want to take anything away from that,” he said. “Some of the people leaving or talking about leaving may not affect an individual person, but it does have an effect on the state as a whole.”
The bill has received bipartisan support in the General Assembly, and Gov. Matt Meyer has signaled his backing.