The upcoming Universal Proxy Card (UPC) presents activist investors with only one potentially significant new burden: solicit two-thirds of the shares in a proxy contest at a portfolio company. Everything else in the new rule, including the new proxy card format and contents and the notice schedule, is largely immaterial to investors.

A close read of the rule and the supporting economic analysis suggests activists can handle this new requirement easily. Almost all proxy contests already hit the 67% level, probably because it means soliciting a surprisingly small number of shareholders. And an activist with an appetite for pushing legal … Read more