Few principles of law are as universally respected by U.S. courts—state and federal—as the "internal affairs rule," which mandates that the law of the state of incorporation governs disputes relating to the corporation's "internal affairs"—namely the relationships among, and the powers and liabilities of, its officers, directors and shareholders. All state jurisdictions at least formally subscribe to this rule, and the Supreme Court has hinted that it may be constitutionally required.