Legal Definitions - fiduciary-shield doctrine

The fiduciary-shield doctrine is a principle in corporate law that protects corporate officers from being held personally liable for actions taken on behalf of the corporation. This means that a corporate officer's act cannot be the basis for jurisdiction over the officer in an individual capacity.

For example, if a CEO of a company makes a decision that results in a lawsuit against the company, the CEO cannot be personally sued for that decision. The lawsuit would be against the company itself, not the CEO.

The fiduciary-shield doctrine is based on the idea that corporate officers have a fiduciary duty to act in the best interests of the corporation, and that they should be able to make decisions without fear of personal liability as long as they are acting in good faith and within the scope of their authority.