Speaking at the Council of Institutional Investors Autumn conference in Los Angeles last week, Jules Kroll, chairman and co-founder of K2 Global Partners, told attendees that investors could improve the integrity of ratings by taking ownership of the process. Investors should not rely solely on regulators to reform rating agencies, three of which generate 95 […]
Read MoreThe Say on Pay continues to play out at US annual meetings this year – both in terms of management and shareholder proposals. Here are a few highlights prepared by Allie Monaco of ProxyGovernance: Two management say on pay proposals were defeated at meetings last week. At its May 3 meeting, Motorola Inc became the […]
Read MoreInsitutional investors can shape the governance debate more effectively by integrating ownership into their mainstream investment activiites according to a new position paper published by Eumedion, the Dutch shareholders group. As the paper points out, the focus around the publication of the Dutch Corporate Governance Code in 2003 was on reinforcing the legal position of […]
Read MoreA new shareholder resolution, debuting at NYSE-listed General Electric Co.’s April 28 meeting, is asking the board to adopt a policy prohibiting any director receiving more than a 20% opposition vote from serving on a key board committee (audit, compensation or nomination) for at least two years. In his supporting statement, shareholder Gerald Armstrong (who is […]
Read MoreThe market for US compensation consultants is looking increasingly concentrated according to new research by ProxyGovernance. Based on data for annual meetings held between Jan. 1, 2009 and July 1, 2009, five consulting firms – Towers Perrinand Watson Wyatt (now combined as Towers Watson & Co.), Frederic W. Cook & Co., Inc. Mercer LLC and […]
Read MoreThe nickel producer and explorer, Western Areas, saw its remuneration report defeated at its AGM on 6 November, as Australia’s stormy AGM season continues.The voting saw 52.5% vote against with a further 2.3% in abstentions. Four other remuneration-related resolutions were withdrawn in light of overwhelming opposition (by more than 2 to 1) from those voting […]
Read MoreLeading US mutual fund manager Oppenheimer Funds has written to the SEC supporting improved disclosure of commercial relationships which might create a conflict of interest. In a Sept.24 letter to the Securities and Exchange Commission commenting on the SEC’s proposed new rules entitled “Proxy Disclosure and Solicitation Enhancements,” OppenheimerFunds said it supports the Commission’s efforts to […]
Read MoreSo it’s not just shareholder meetings that have voting problems. The UK’s general election collapsed into the realms of farce this week with disenfranchised voters complaining of lost ballot cards, out of date voting registers and exclusion from polling stations – now where have we heard those complaints before? So, why can we usher thousands of private […]
Read MoreThe UK’s High Court has granted an injunction prohibiting the Director of the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) from taking any further steps in its plea bargain settlement with BAE Systems. SFO has been investigating alleged bribery and corruption in BAE’s arms deals since 2004 in several countries (including Chile, Czech Republic, Qatar, Romania, Saudi Arabia, South […]
Read MoreBall Corp, an Indiana-incorporated company, has faced shareholder proposals in four of the past five years (2005, 2006, 2008 and 2009) to declassify its board. In each year, despite board opposition, the proposal received majority support from shareholders voting for and against. Despite the message from shareholders, the board took no action to address their concerns. […]
Read More