In a tumultuous year, one of the key clear messages to emerge from 2020 was that environmental, social and governance (ESG) concerns are here to stay. As mentioned in our 31 July 2020 article “ESG in 2020: A Half-Year...more
2/9/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Climate Change ,
Corporate Governance ,
Corporate Social Responsibility ,
Debt Market ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Flexible Work Arrangements ,
Green Bonds ,
Popular ,
Publicly-Traded Companies ,
Remuneration ,
Supply Chain ,
Sustainability
The change in administration is expected to bring a governmental and regulatory climate that is vastly more hospitable to calls to facilitate the incorporation of environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors into...more
Proxy advisory firms Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) and Glass Lewis recently announced updates to their proxy voting guidelines for the 2021 proxy season. These updates reflect institutional investors’ increased...more
12/14/2020
/ Board of Directors ,
Corporate Governance ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Diversity ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Glass Lewis ,
Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) ,
Proxy Season ,
Proxy Voting Guidelines ,
Publicly-Traded Companies ,
Special Purpose Acquisition Companies (SPACs)
On December 1, 2020, the Nasdaq Stock Market filed a proposal with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to amend its listing standards to encourage greater board diversity and enhanced diversity disclosures for...more
The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted U.S. public companies in myriad ways. The fact that the traditional proxy season — the period from April through June when a substantial number of public companies hold their annual meetings...more
The recently published “The Friedman Essay and the True Purpose of the Business Corporation” defends a view of stakeholder governance that reflects the following two basic flaws...more
In October 2019, for the third consecutive year, the Staff of the Division of Corporation Finance (Staff) of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) issued guidance concerning companies’ ability to exclude...more
Directors of most for-profit U.S. corporations have long considered the corporation’s relationships with customers, employees, suppliers and the communities in which they operate — sometimes referred to as “stakeholders” — in...more
8/7/2020
/ Board of Directors ,
Business Judgment Rule ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Corporate Governance ,
Directors ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Human Rights ,
Oversight Duties ,
Shareholders ,
Stakeholder Engagement
Despite political and economic uncertainties, markets and deal activity were resilient in 2019, and strong fundamentals remain in place heading into 2020. Companies continue to face a challenging litigation and enforcement...more
1/30/2020
/ Acquisitions ,
Administrative Procedure Act ,
Anti-Discrimination Policies ,
Anti-Harassment Policies ,
Anti-Kickback Statute ,
Antitrust Investigations ,
Appeals ,
Arbitration Awards ,
Attorney General ,
Backstop Agreements ,
BEPS ,
BitLicense ,
Blockchain ,
Board of Directors ,
Bonds ,
Capital Markets ,
CFIUS ,
CFTC ,
Chapter 11 ,
Claim Preclusion ,
Class Action ,
Commercial Bankruptcy ,
Common Stock ,
Congressional Investigations & Hearings ,
Congressional Subpoenas ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Cooperation Agreement ,
Copyright ,
Corporate Governance ,
Corporate Restructuring ,
Corporate Social Responsibility ,
Corporate Taxes ,
Corwin Doctrine ,
Covenant Lite Deals ,
Creditors ,
Cross-Border Transactions ,
DACA ,
DE Supreme Court ,
Debt Financing ,
Debtors ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Dischargeable Debts ,
Disgorgement ,
Disparate Impact ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Down Rounds ,
Drug Pricing ,
EBITDA ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Discrimination ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Enforcement of Foreign Judgments ,
Enterprise Act 2002 ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
EU ,
Fair Housing Act (FHA) ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
FinTech ,
FIRRMA ,
Foreign Acquisitions ,
Foreign Investment ,
Foreign Issuers ,
FRCP 23 ,
General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) ,
General Elections ,
GILTI tax ,
High-Yield Markets ,
Hong Kong ,
Hong Kong Stock Exchange ,
Individual Accountability ,
Initial Public Offering (IPO) ,
Intellectual Property Litigation ,
Intercreditor Agreements ,
International Arbitration ,
International Litigation ,
IRS ,
Issue Preclusion ,
Japan ,
Joint Venture ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Life Sciences ,
Listing Rules ,
Litigation Strategies ,
Make-Whole Premium ,
Mergers ,
MFW ,
Multinationals ,
National Security ,
PCAOB ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Political Parties ,
Preferred Shares ,
Private Offerings ,
Privately Held Corporations ,
Proxy Advisory Firms ,
Publicly-Traded Companies ,
Refinancing ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Reporting Requirements ,
SCOTUS ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Litigation ,
Separation of Powers ,
Shareholder Activism ,
Shareholder Proposals ,
Shareholders ,
Split of Authority ,
State Labor Laws ,
Stock Drop Litigation ,
Tax Cuts and Jobs Act ,
Tax Litigation ,
Technology Sector ,
Third-Party Release Agrements ,
Transparency ,
UK ,
UK Brexit ,
Valuation ,
White Collar Crimes
Three significant trends mark the last decade in corporate governance, and they have only accelerated over time: (i) the dismantling of structural provisions that some shareholders believe insulate directors from...more
On November 5, 2019, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), by 3-2 votes, issued two releases proposing a number of amendments to the federal proxy rules. The first release proposed changes to certain procedural...more
11/8/2019
/ Anti-Fraud Provisions ,
Comment Period ,
Corporate Governance ,
Proposed Amendments ,
Proxy Season ,
Proxy Solicitations ,
Proxy Voting Guidelines ,
Publicly-Traded Companies ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Rule 14a-8 ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Shareholder Proposals ,
Threshold Requirements
Institutional Shareholder Services Inc. (ISS), an influential proxy advisory firm, recently proposed changes to its benchmark voting policies to be applied for upcoming shareholder meetings taking place on or after February...more
10/10/2019
/ Benchmarking ,
CEOs ,
Corporate Governance ,
Independent Boards ,
Initial Public Offering (IPO) ,
Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) ,
Policy Updates ,
Proxy Advisory Firms ,
Proxy Season ,
Proxy Voting Guidelines ,
Public Comment ,
Repurchase Options ,
Shareholder Meetings ,
Shareholder Proposals ,
Shareholder Votes
There is an ongoing debate regarding the role of publicly traded for-profit business corporations in addressing the many serious challenges confronting society, including some directly involving nonshareholder corporate...more
On August 21, 2019, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), by a 3-2 vote, issued two separate releases providing interpretive guidance relating to the proxy voting process. One release addresses the proxy voting...more
8/27/2019
/ Anti-Fraud Provisions ,
Corporate Governance ,
Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) ,
Interpretive Rule ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Management ,
Proxy Advisory Firms ,
Proxy Season ,
Proxy Voting ,
Proxy Voting Guidelines ,
Publicly-Traded Companies ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
There is an ongoing debate about the role that publicly traded for-profit business corporations should play in addressing a broad range of problems confronting our world today. Many issues fall under the ESG label — meaning...more
U.S. public companies face a wide array of challenges, from greater market volatility and increasing economic and geopolitical uncertainty to disruptive technologies, artificial intelligence, social media and cybersecurity...more
1/23/2019
/ Activist Investors ,
Board of Directors ,
CEOs ,
Corporate Culture ,
Corporate Governance ,
Corporate Social Responsibility ,
Corporate Strategy ,
Cybersecurity ,
Diversity ,
Popular ,
Proxy Statements ,
Proxy Voting ,
Publicly-Traded Companies ,
Risk Management ,
Risk Mitigation ,
Shareholder Activism
On November 13, 2018, Skadden held our webinar “Preparing for the Shareholder Proposal Season.” The panelists were Peter da Silva Vint, Vice President of BlackRock’s Americas Investment Stewardship Group; Michael Garland,...more
11/21/2018
/ Board of Directors ,
Corporate Governance ,
Corporate Social Responsibility ,
Diversity ,
Gender-Based Pay Discrimination ,
Proxy Access ,
Proxy Season ,
Ratification ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Shareholder Proposals ,
Shareholders ,
Special Meetings
On October 23, 2018, the Division of Corporation Finance (Staff) of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) published Staff Legal Bulletin No. 14J (SLB 14J), which provides important guidance concerning shareholder...more
10/25/2018
/ Board of Directors ,
Corporate Governance ,
Executive Compensation ,
Micromanagement ,
New Guidance ,
No-Action Relief ,
Ordinary Business Exception ,
Publicly-Traded Companies ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Shareholder Proposals ,
Shareholders
U.S. companies face a dizzying array of challenges, including from disruptive technologies and cybersecurity threats; economic and geopolitical uncertainties; climate change and evolving sustainability metrics; and questions...more
1/25/2018
/ Board of Directors ,
Compliance ,
Corporate Governance ,
Corporate Social Responsibility ,
Diversity ,
Executive Compensation ,
Independent Directors ,
Investors ,
Proxy Statements ,
Say-on-Pay ,
Shareholder Activism ,
Sustainability ,
Transparency
Tax reform, shifting international dynamics, Trump administration goals and a potentially strong market for transactions all seem likely to impact business activity in 2018. Below are 10 areas to explore in our 10th annual...more
1/23/2018
/ #MeToo ,
Acquisitions ,
China ,
Class Action ,
Climate Change ,
Corporate Governance ,
Corporate Social Responsibility ,
Cybersecurity ,
Enforcement Actions ,
EU ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
Mergers ,
National Security ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Securities Litigation ,
Tax Reform ,
Trade Secrets ,
Trump Administration ,
UK Brexit
Companies have important decisions to make as they prepare for their 2018 annual meeting and reporting season. We have prepared a checklist of key corporate governance, executive compensation and disclosure matters on which...more
12/4/2017
/ Annual Meeting ,
Auditors ,
Corporate Governance ,
Cybersecurity ,
D&O Insurance ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Executive Compensation ,
Filing Requirements ,
Pay Ratio ,
Proxy Access ,
Proxy Voting Guidelines ,
Publicly-Traded Companies ,
Say-on-Pay ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
XBRL Filing Requirements
On November 16, 2017, Skadden held our webinar “Preparing for the Shareholder Proposal Season.” The panelists were Michael Garland, Assistant Comptroller for Corporate Governance and Responsible Investment in the Office of...more
11/30/2017
/ Annual Meeting ,
Board of Directors ,
Bylaws ,
Comptroller ,
Corporate Governance ,
Division of Corporate Finance ,
Independent Boards ,
Proxy Access ,
Proxy Season ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Shareholder Proposals ,
Shareholders ,
Special Meetings ,
Written Consent
The Division of Corporation Finance (Staff) of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) recently published Staff Legal Bulletin No. 14I (SLB 14I), which provides important new and timely guidance for companies and...more
As we approach the end of the 2017 proxy season, the third since the New York City comptroller launched the Boardroom Accountability Project to enact proxy access across the U.S. market, proxy access has begun to transition...more
On June 8, 2017, the House of Representatives passed, by a 233-186 vote (with all Democrats and one Republican voting against), the Financial CHOICE Act of 2017, a bill principally designed to reverse many features of the...more
6/12/2017
/ Clawbacks ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Corporate Governance ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Executive Compensation ,
Financial CHOICE Act ,
Pending Legislation ,
Proxy Advisory Firms ,
Repeal ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Shareholder Proposals ,
Trump Administration