so a lawyer friend of mine who has some knowledge of stocks and such said that
"if the company wanted, they could withhold anyone's shares they so desired, for whatever reason they felt compelled. the only way those folks could go about forcing the company to issue those shares would be to spend money out of their own pocket going to court to sue for the shares, at which time the company could still drag it out for a very long time."
hopefully the company knows this and keeps it in consideration. JMO