News & Analysis as of

Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) Proxy Voting Corporate Governance

Paul Hastings LLP

Regulating Proxy Advisors: Court Rules Advice Is Not a ‘Solicitation’ and Texas Enacts Its Own Law

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On July 1, 2025, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ended more than five years of uncertainty and confusion by ruling that proxy voting advice issued by proxy advisors is not a “solicitation” under...more

BCLP

Pullback on Consideration of Board Diversity by ISS, BlackRock and Vanguard

BCLP on

Citing recent DEI developments in the U.S., ISS released its Statement on Diversity Factors in Director Elections on February 11, 2025 announcing that it will “indefinitely halt consideration of certain diversity factors in...more

Cooley LLP

BlackRock and Vanguard Release 2025 Proxy Voting Guidelines

Cooley LLP on

On January 31, 2025, Vanguard issued its proxy voting policy for US portfolio companies, following the publication of BlackRock’s proxy voting guidelines for benchmark policies – US securities in December 2024. The updates...more

Venable LLP

ISS and Glass Lewis Release Proxy Voting Policy Changes for 2025

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Institutional Shareholder Services Inc. (“ISS”) recently released its updates to its Proxy Voting Guidelines. These updates will take effect for all annual meetings held after February 1, 2025....more

Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP

Latest Changes to ISS and Glass Lewis Proxy Voting Guidelines

Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) and Glass Lewis, two leading proxy advisory firms, recently announced updates to their U.S. proxy voting policies in advance of the 2025 proxy and annual meeting season. Public...more

Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP

ISS, Glass Lewis and BlackRock Issue 2025 Voting Guidelines

As companies begin preparing for the 2025 proxy season, Institutional Shareholder Services Inc. (ISS) and Glass Lewis, the leading providers of corporate governance solutions and proxy advisory services, recently issued...more

Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP

2025 Proxy Advisory Firm Voting Guidelines: Canadian Highlights

In preparation for the upcoming 2025 proxy season, issuers should familiarize themselves with the updated Canadian proxy voting guidelines recently published by Institutional Shareholder Services Inc. (ISS) and Glass, Lewis &...more

Ropes & Gray LLP

Practical Takeaways from Spence v. American Airlines, Inc. for ERISA Plan Fiduciaries

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On January 10, 2025, Judge Reed O’Connor of the Northern District of Texas issued a much-anticipated ruling in Spence v. American Airlines, Inc., which marks the first time that a federal judge has written an on-the-merits...more

BakerHostetler

Preparing for the 2025 Proxy and Annual Reporting Season: Key Issues and Considerations

BakerHostetler on

For the 2025 proxy and annual reporting season, there are a number of key issues to consider and keep an eye on for further developments as preparations commence. This alert provides an overview of these issues and updates in...more

Cooley LLP

BlackRock Updates Voting Policies and Engagement Priorities

Cooley LLP on

Just before the holidays got going, BlackRock updated their voting policies and engagement priorities. Here’s a laundry list of those updated documents...more

Fenwick & West LLP

2024 Proxy Season Results in Silicon Valley and Large Companies Nationwide

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Over the last five years, stockholder activism has undergone significant transformation, shaped by changing market conditions, regulatory developments, and evolving societal expectations. Activism has continued to spread...more

Cooley LLP

In appeal, NAM insists “solicitation” includes proxy voting advice

Cooley LLP on

Back in February, in ISS v. SEC, the D.C. Federal District Court vacated the SEC’s 2020 rule that advice from proxy advisory firms was a “solicitation” under the proxy rules. Both the SEC and National Association of...more

White & Case LLP

Japan 2024 Proxy Season

White & Case LLP on

Summary of June 2024 Annual General Shareholder Meeting Season Shareholder Proposals - - While the total number of shareholder proposals is comparable to the June 2023 general meeting season, the number of companies...more

Goodwin

Minding the Store: Unanticipated ESG Issues Affecting ERISA Fiduciary Supervision

Goodwin on

A recent summary judgment decision from the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas in an ERISA (Employee Retirement Income Security Act) class action challenging the alleged impact of environmental, social,...more

ArentFox Schiff

Airline 401k Decision Illustrates Continued Takeoff of ESG Litigation

ArentFox Schiff on

A Texas federal judge recently permitted an environmental, social, and governance- (ESG) related Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) case filed by an airline pilot against his employer and its benefits plan to...more

Vinson & Elkins LLP

Courting Shareholder Proposals: ExxonMobil Sidesteps SEC and Sues to Block Scope 3 Shareholder Proposal - UPDATED February 2, 2024

Vinson & Elkins LLP on

ExxonMobil (“Exxon”) filed a complaint in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas on Sunday, January 21, 2024, seeking a declaratory judgment to exclude a shareholder proposal from its proxy statement...more

Fenwick & West LLP

Proxy Voting Advisory Firms Address Severance Payments, Cybersecurity Risk Ownership and Share Ownership Guidelines in Updates to...

Fenwick & West LLP on

Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) and Glass Lewis, the leading proxy voting advisory firms in the United States, have announced updates and clarifications for their voting guidelines for the U.S. market for the 2024...more

Fenwick & West LLP

2023 Proxy Season Results in Silicon Valley and Large Companies Nationwide

Fenwick & West LLP on

Broadly considered, stockholder activism has been a significant phenomenon among the largest U.S. public companies, with activists of a variety of stripes waging campaigns on a wide range of issues including in the form of...more

Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft LLP

Republicans Unveil Bills Targeting ESG in Securities and Banking

In late July 2023, House Republicans on the Financial Services Committee introduced four bills targeting various business and market activities that implicate environmental, social, and governance issues. In a statement...more

Vinson & Elkins LLP

Shareholder Activism: A High and Rising Tide

Vinson & Elkins LLP on

In this V&E+ interview, Lawrence and Patrick share their thoughts on the 2023 proxy season, peacetime preparation for activism defense, and the HBO show that no one could seem to stop talking about....more

White & Case LLP

Nine developments and trends shaping US shareholder activism in 2023

White & Case LLP on

Following a brief decline during the pandemic, shareholder activism in the US rebounded to pre-pandemic levels in 2022 despite—or perhaps because of—volatile markets, depressed share prices and macro-economic uncertainty....more

Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer

Republican-Led States Sue to Block ESG Investment Rule, a Fight With Potential Far-Reaching Implications for the Anti-ESG Movement

The Department of Labor (DOL) on Dec. 1, 2022, finalized regulations titled “Prudence and Loyalty in Selecting Plan Investments and Exercising Shareholder Rights” (the 2022 Rule) that provide greater flexibility to retirement...more

Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft LLP

Review of Investor Voting on Environmentally Focused Shareholder Proposals in 2022

On February 14, 2023, Georgeson LLC, the shareholder proxy solicitation firm, published an analysis of investor voting decisions in 2022 on certain types of shareholder proposals. In preparing its report, it looked at public...more

Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP

The Informed Board - Winter 2023

In the current environment, tax-free spinoffs may be the best option for companies focusing their business lines, we explain in this issue of The Informed Board. Spin-offs do not depend on third parties, and they preserve...more

WilmerHale

Proxy Advisory Firm Policy Updates for the 2023 Proxy Season

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In preparation for the 2023 proxy season, proxy advisory firms Glass Lewis and Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) announced updates to their voting guidelines for investors, effective on January 1, 2023, and February 1,...more

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