Changes

In October 2007, several members of Georgia's [[Cobb EMC]] filed suit against the cooperative’s board members. The suit alleged “gross mismanagement, breach of fiduciary duty, self-enrichment and a waste of corporate assets, related to the relationship between Cobb EMC and Cobb Energy.” Cobb Energy was created in 1997 as a for-profit entity and would be responsible for the day-to-day operations of Cobb EMC after Cobb Energy and Cobb EMC signed a 40-year operating contract. The contract allowed Cobb Energy to sign an 11 percent markup for running Cobb EMC. The plaintiffs argued that Cobb EMC board members were moving millions of dollars in EMC money to Cobb Energy. Judge Stephen Schuster of the Cobb County Superior Court heard arguments in the case and in December 2008, after nearly 14 months of litigation, a settlement agreement between the two parties was reached. Although the case was settled, the plaintiffs found that the however Cobb EMC board was not following through with the order to make board elections more democratic. The plaintiffs appealed the case to the Georgia Court of Appeals. Board elections were suspended by the Court of Appeals until a resolution of the suit was reached. On , and on April 14, 2010, the Georgia Court of Appeals ruled unanimously in favor of the plaintiffs finding that the bylaw changes focusing on elections and proxy voting were in violation of the 2008 settlement agreement between the plaintiffs and Cobb EMC.<ref name="tbc">[http://takebackcobbemc.com/background.html "Background"] Take Back Cobb EMC, accessed October 2010.</ref>

In April 2009, the Cobb County district attorney's office and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) executed a search warrant related to possible theft and racketeering among Cobb EMC CEO Dwight Brown and board members including Larry Chadwick, David McGinnis and Frank Boone. GBI agents confiscated files from Cobb EMC headquarters and the personal residences of several board members. The results of this investigation are not yet known. In addition, in November 2009 attorney Charles Gabriel filed a class action lawsuit against Cobb EMC seeking $300 million plaintiffs argue Cobb EMC owes its members.<ref name="tbc"/>