Which term best describes malfeasance, misfeasance, or nonfeasance in relation to Board duties?

• A. Malfeasance, misfeasance, or nonfeasance in relation to Board duties
• B. Honest mistakes
• C. Neglect unrelated to Board duties
• D. Administrative error

Answer: (A)

Understanding malfeasance, misfeasance, and nonfeasance in the context of Board duties means recognizing the range of ways a board member can fail in office. Malfeasance is about taking an illegal or unauthorized action in an official role, misfeasance is performing a duty improperly or negligently, and nonfeasance is failing to perform a required duty. When these concepts are described specifically as they relate to Board duties, the phrasing that directly ties all three terms to the board setting communicates both the scope and the location of the problem. The other options don’t fit because they describe general errors or neglect not tied to the Board’s responsibilities, or they describe a broad administrative issue rather than the trio of improper acts and omissions in governance.