ISS Discusses Role of Shareholder Proposals in Shaping U.S. Governance Practices

By Kosmas Papadopoulos February 15, 2019 by renholding

Over the past three decades, shareholder proposals have transformed the corporate landscape in the U.S. by spurring the adoption of governance best practices. Annual director elections, majority vote rules for director elections, shareholder approval for poison pills, and proxy access …

ISS Discusses U.S. Proxy Voting Trends from 2000 to 2018: Environmental and Social Issues

By Kosmas Papadopoulos February 5, 2019 by renholding

Appearances can be very deceiving. Case in point: The high-level summary numbers of voting results over the last 19 years seem to indicate that little has changed regarding proxy voting behavior among investors owning U.S. companies. A simple analysis of …

Wachtell Lipton on the State of Play of Activism at Year-End 2018

By Martin Lipton and Zachary S. Podolsky January 3, 2019 by renholding

As we noted in early 2018, the threat of activism continues to be high, and has become a global phenomenon. The conclusion of a volatile and dynamic 2018 prompts a brief update of the state of play.

Activist assets under

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Wachtell Lipton Puts a Spotlight on Boards

By Martin Lipton December 3, 2018 by renholding

The ever-evolving challenges facing corporate boards prompt an updated snapshot of what is expected from the board of directors of a major public company—not just the legal rules, but also the aspirational “best practices” that have come to have equivalent …

Cleary Gottlieb Discusses Updates to Proxy Adviser Guidelines

By Michael Albano, Julia M. Rozenblit and Emily Barry November 12, 2018 by renholding

As 2018 draws to a close, both Institutional Shareholder Services Inc. (“ISS”) and Glass Lewis are in the process of updating their 2019 proxy voting guidelines.

In mid-October, ISS launched its 2019 benchmark voting policy consultation period, pursuant to which …

How Boards Can Get Ready for Climate Change

By Sophie L'Helias and Nina Hodzic November 1, 2018 by renholding

We are constantly reminded of the urgency to act as we witness the impact of climate-related events on peoples’ lives and their communities around the world.

The signing of the Paris Climate Agreement in 2016 was a watershed moment as …

SEC Commissioner Discusses Improving Information for Investors in the Digital Age

By Kara M. Stein October 26, 2018 by renholding

I last spoke to you in May 2014 about “Building Momentum.”[1] At the time, I was a rookie Commissioner. Now, I stand before you after five years as a Commissioner and over 5,700 votes under my belt. It has

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Wachtell Lipton Discusses the State of Play in Activism

By Martin Lipton and Zachary S. Podolsky October 11, 2018 by renholding

As we approach the 2019 proxy season, developments since September 2017 prompt a brief updated review of the state of play.

The threat of activism remains high, and has become increasingly global.
Activist assets under management remain at elevated levels,

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SEC Commissioner Airs Her Beef With Stakeholders

By Hester M. Peirce September 26, 2018 by renholding

Last time I flew to California, the skies were so clear that I was able to keep an eye on the changing landscape below all the way across the country. The vastness and great variety was striking. Having grown up

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Wachtell Lipton Discusses Boards’ Role in Sustainability and Corporate Social Responsibility

By David M. Silk, David A. Katz, Sabastian V. Niles and Carmen X.W. Lu July 3, 2018 by renholding

In light of evolving—and sometimes actively debated—perspectives on the role of public companies with respect to sustainability, corporate social responsibility and other ESG matters (e.g., Barron’s recent report on Sustainable Investing), we are providing a high-level overview …

Wachtell Lipton Discusses Shareholder Activism, Corporate Governance, and the Hunt for Long-Term Value

By Sabastian V. Niles June 22, 2018 by renholding

As the spotlight on boards, management teams, corporate performance and governance intensifies, as articles like the Bloomberg and Fortune profiles of Elliott Management (“The World’s Most Feared Investor—Why the World’s CEOs Fear Paul Singer” and “Whatever It Takes to Win—How …

The Third Stage of Corporate Governance

By James P. Hawley and Jon Lukomnik May 22, 2018 by renholding

The recent announcements from major institutional investors about issues such as gender diversity and climate change seem like reactions to social ills. But they are not unmoored from investing. They are logical expressions of a relatively newly empowered, third phase …

Wachtell Lipton Discusses Labor Department’s Cautionary Tone on ESG-Related Matters

By David M. Silk, Sabastian V. Niles, Alicia C. McCarthy and Carmen X.W. Lu May 8, 2018 by renholding

With shareholder proposals regarding ESG and sustainability matters becoming the most common kind of proposal, proxy advisory firm ISS marketing a new “Environmental & Social QualityScore” product for rating public companies, asset managers developing ESG-related guidelines and voting policies, and …

The Purpose of the Corporation

By Martin Lipton April 11, 2018 by renholding

Whether the purpose of the corporation is to generate profits for its shareholders or to operate in the interests of all of its stakeholders has been actively debated since 1932, when it was the subject of dueling law review articles …

Wachtell Lipton Discusses Risk Management and the Board of Directors

By Martin Lipton, Wayne M. Carlin, Daniel A. Neff, Sabastian V. Niles and Andrew R. Brownstein April 4, 2018 by Carly Goeman

The past year has seen continued evolution in the political, legal and economic arenas as technological change accelerates. Innovation, new business models, dealmaking and rapidly evolving technologies are transforming competitive and industry landscapes and impacting companies’ strategic plans and prospects …

Wachtell Lipton Discusses Investor Engagement in the New Paradigm for Corporate Governance

By Martin Lipton, Steven A. Rosenblum, Karessa L. Cain and Sabastian V. Niles February 13, 2018 by charlesbluesky

The accelerated interest in sustainability, ESG, corporate social responsibility and investment for long-term growth and value creation (the new paradigm) as most cogently exemplified by Value Act’s newly formed Spring Fund focusing on promoting environmental and social goals of the

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Nonfinancial Risk Disclosure and the Costs of Private Ordering

By Virginia Harper Ho January 22, 2018 by renholding

2017 was a year of major developments that are changing how companies disclose nonfinancial environmental, social, and governance (ESG) risk to investors. In January, regulations implementing the European Union’s 2014 Nonfinancial Reporting Directive took effect for certain large companies operating …

How Investor Activism Affects Corporate Social Responsibility

By Martijn Cremers, Luc Renneboog and Tamas Barko September 6, 2017 by renholding

Prominent activist investors such as hedge funds, pension funds, and influential individual shareholders and families increasingly aim to reshape corporate policies and strategy. In our paper “Shareholder Engagement on Environmental, Social, and Governance Performance”, we use a proprietary …

How a “Comply or Explain” Rule Would Improve Nonfinancial Disclosure

By Virginia Harper Ho March 14, 2017 by renholding

In 2016, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) issued a Concept Release on Regulation S-K as part of its comprehensive review of the effectiveness of federal disclosure rules. The release included for the first time a request for comment on …

Fiduciary Duties and ESG Investing: Corporate Governance and the Growing Importance of ESG Reporting

By Susan N. Gary November 11, 2015 by ilyabeylin

Fiduciaries manage significant assets held in university endowments, pension funds, charitable foundations, and private trusts. These fiduciaries have a duty of loyalty to the purposes and beneficiaries they serve and must comply with the prudent investor standard in making investment …

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