You might recall that the litigation over the SEC’s climate disclosure rules (see, e.g., this PubCo post) was not limited to those, like the Chamber of Commerce, Liberty Energy and the State of Iowa, challenging the SEC’s...more
In this announcement, the SEC’s Office of Structured Disclosure advises that many of us have been tagging our basic and diluted earnings-per-share data incorrectly. The announcement indicates that this data should be tagged...more
You may recall that, in January, ExxonMobil filed a lawsuit against Arjuna Capital, LLC and Follow This, the two proponents of a climate-related shareholder proposal submitted to Exxon, seeking a declaratory judgment that it...more
Nasdaq has proposed to modify some of its corporate governance rules—specifically Rules 5605, 5615 and 5810—to modify the phase-in schedules for the independent director and committee requirements in connection with IPOs,...more
In 2023, the SEC adopted a number of new rule amendments intended to reduce risks in the clearance and settlement processes, including, significantly, a change that will reduce the standard settlement cycle for most...more
On May 21, 2024, Corp Fin Director Erik Gerding issued a statement designed to clarify the use of Form 8-K Item 1.05 versus Form 8-K Item 8.01 when reporting cybersecurity incidents. Sounds like some of us might be doing it...more
Here is a great article—no surprise considering its author, Columbia Law Professor John Coffee—that practically gives the last rites to the “shadow trading” theory recently accepted by a federal district court and a jury in...more
In this statement, SEC Chief Accountant Paul Munter discusses the importance of setting the tone at the top. According to Munter, “academic research has ‘long stressed the crucial role that tone at the top, set by...more
According to Bloomberg, there’s now a bipartisan push to re-propose the SEC’s stock buyback rule. As you may remember, the SEC’s Share Repurchase Disclosure Modernization rule, adopted in 2023, required quarterly reporting of...more
On Friday, SEC Enforcement charged audit firm BF Borgers CPA PC and its owner, Benjamin F. Borgers, with “massive fraud” involving “deliberate and systemic failures” to comply with PCAOB standards in auditing and reviewing...more
In Seven Questions About Proxy Advisors, from the Rock Center for Corporate Governance at Stanford, the authors, David Larcker and Brian Tayan, examine the proxy advisory firm industry—all two of them. Well, actually, as the...more
You probably remember the saga about the SEC’s rules regarding proxy advisory firms? Back in 2019, the SEC issued interpretive guidance that proxy advisory firms’ vote recommendations were, in the view of the SEC,...more
You remember the 2020 SolarWinds hack, perhaps one of the worst cyberattacks in history? As described by NPR in 2021, the hack was “believed to be directed by the Russian intelligence service, the SVR,” which used a “routine...more
As you probably remember, the SEC’s climate disclosure rules were challenged not only by those contending that the rules went too far and that the SEC had no authority—think, for example, Liberty Energy, the State of Iowa and...more
Yesterday, the House Financial Services Committee held a hearing entitled “Beyond Scope: How the SEC’s Climate Rule Threatens American Markets.” Since, as one of the committee members observed, this is their sixth hearing on...more
At the Corp Fin Workshop last week, a segment of PLI’s SEC Speaks 2024, the panel focused on disclosure review, a task that occupies 70% of Corp Fin attorneys and accountants. The panel discussed several key topics, looking...more
The trial took eight days. The jury took two hours. On Friday, in the case of SEC v. Panuwat, the jury in a federal district court in California determined that Matthew Panuwat was civilly liable for insider trading under the...more
The SEC has determined, in this Order posted today, to exercise its discretion to stay the final climate disclosure rules “pending the completion of judicial review of the consolidated Eighth Circuit petitions.” If you have...more
In remarks at PLI’s SEC Speaks, SEC Commissioner Mark Uyeda expressed his concern that the SEC “has gone astray”: instead of focusing on “its narrow mission,” Uyeda fears, the SEC is acceding to the pressure of political...more
In her remarks yesterday at PLI’s SEC Speaks—after a detour to excoriate the SEC’s “maze of staff guidance” defining industry practices that has become effectively “mandatory” even in the absence of input from the full SEC...more
Since we’ve been preoccupied with the litigation over SEC’s climate disclosure rules, it’s time for a break. Something new and different. How about the litigation over the California climate disclosure rules: Senate Bill...more
It’s been a day or two now—what’s going on with the SEC’s climate disclosure rules litigation? When we left our tale, petitioners Liberty and Nomad had submitted this notice of pending emergency motion advising the Eighth...more
Liberty Energy Incorporated and Nomad Proppant Services LLC decided to give it another go. Are you surprised? In this notice of pending emergency motion, Liberty and Nomad advise the Eighth Circuit of their request for a new...more
We hear a lot about companies taking public positions on political issues—as well as the backlash that many experience as a result. Whether you think corporate participation in politics is a good thing or a bad thing, you...more
As discussed in these PubCo posts from Monday, Saturday, Tuesday and Thursday, on March 15, in a one-sentence order, the Fifth Circuit granted a motion by Liberty Energy Inc. and Nomad Proppant Services LLC for an...more