(November 17, 2009, BNA Corporate Accountability Report)
Recently, Corporate Governance partner Holly J. Gregory of Weil, Gotshal & Manges' New York office was quoted by BNA in their Corporate Accountability Report. The article, cleanly entitled "Corporate Governance," deals with potential issues that may arise during the approaching proxy season, and the intricacies resulting from heightened activism on the part of investors. Gregory warns that with the heightened investor attention to governance and the interest in regulatory reform from the SEC and Congress, Governance and Nominating Committees are in for a busy time. As one example, a new SEC rule interpretation alters the ability of companies to omit certain shareholder proposals relating to CEO succession planning and board oversight of risk management.
According to Gregory, companies are preparing for the rigors of the season: ‘"Concerned companies are making the effort to reach out to their large institutional investors to make sure they truly understand their concerns, and to update investors on the board’s goals and actions."
The piece was written by Tina Chi, and appeared on November 13, 2009.