Company: LAZ
Filing Date: 2025-02-24
Form Type: 10-K
Source: 0001628280-25-007441
Chunk: 137

Company: Lazard, Inc.
Filing Date: 2025-02-24
Form: 10-K
Item: Item 1A
Chunk 137
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 on tax reform and have proposed and implemented tax legislation and regulations that could affect the taxation of multinational companies. For example, the implementation of the OECD directives may vary by country in which we operate and could unfavorably impact our overall tax rate. 

Tax authorities may challenge our tax computations and classifications, our transfer pricing methods and our application of related policies and methods.

Our tax returns are subject to audit by U.S. federal, state, local and foreign tax authorities. These authorities may successfully challenge certain tax positions or deductions taken by our subsidiaries. For example, tax authorities may contest intercompany allocations of fee income, management charges or interest charges among affiliates in different tax jurisdictions. While we believe that we have provided the appropriate required reserves, it is possible that a tax authority may disagree with all, or a portion, of the tax benefits claimed. If a tax authority were to successfully challenge our positions, it could result in significant additional tax costs or payments under the tax receivable agreement described below.

 Anti-takeover provisions in our organizational documents and Delaware law could delay or prevent a change in control.

Our certificate of incorporation and by-laws contain provisions that may make the merger or acquisition of the Company more difficult, for example:

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•permitting our Board of Directors to issue one or more series of preferred stock; 

•providing that any vacancy on the board of directors may be filled only by a majority of the directors then in office or by the sole remaining director;

•requiring advance notice for stockholder proposals and nominations; 

•providing that, subject to certain limitations, (i) the Board of Directors is expressly authorized to adopt, amend and repeal our by-laws and (ii) that our stockholders may only adopt, amend and repeal our by-laws with the approval of at least a majority of the outstanding shares of our capital stock entitled to vote thereon (or, in some cases, a super-majority);

•providing that the Board of Directors will be divided into three classes of directors serving staggered three-year terms;

•establishing limitations on convening stockholder meetings; 

•requiring stockholder action by written consent to be unanimous; and 

•providing for the removal of directors only for cause.

In addition, certain provisions of Delaware law give us the ability to delay or prevent a transaction that could cause a change in our control. These provisions may also discourage acquisition proposals or delay or prevent a change in control. The market price of our common stock could be