US companies traditionally incorporate in Delaware, because the tiny state offers a liberal company law environment and has gone out of its way to make itself attractive as a registration base, but it may have to look to its laurels – Microsoft Corp says it may reincorporate back home in Washington state now that better director-liability laws have been enacted there, the Wall Street Journal reports; Microsoft says it isn’t in its best interest to pay high insurance premiums that can range from $750,000 to $1.4m for a one-year policy – and franchise fees for registering can also be a nuisance – Delaware made the most of it with an annual $150,000 fee.
