The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has signalled a new approach to its regulation of shareholder proposals, especially as they relate to social impact issues. In Staff Bulletin No. 14M, the SEC simplified the procedure for companies
On January 4, 2024, the Court of Chancery of Delaware struck down the largest potential compensation plan in the history of public market – Elon Musk’s $55.8 billion compensation plan from Tesla. Can Musk override the Court’s decision with a
On November 5, 2024, Donald Trump secured a decisive victory in the U.S. presidential election. In response, markets surged, while activists watched closely as companies and investors alike prepared for uncertainty and braced against the threat of “America First” tariffs
Recently, there have been a number of high-profile proxy fights involving trusts, particularly real estate investment trusts (REITs). In contrast to corporations, a trust is predominately governed by its declaration of trust (DOT). While a shareholder
Canada saw 69 shareholder activist campaigns in 2023 – an unprecedented high from previous years. The 2024 proxy season saw a continued evolution of the shareholder activism landscape with a record-breaking 76 activist campaigns across 55 Canadian companies and 11 sectors. Investors are continuing to seek change through activist measures and, with increased focus, are seeing higher success rates – nearly doubling the success rate of that of management.
With the 2024 proxy season now in full swing, companies face a number of important questions. Among them is the timely question of meeting format: whether to hold the company’s annual general meeting (AGM) in person, virtually, or
As artificial intelligence (AI) regulation takes shape globally, public companies face the challenge of navigating this evolving landscape. In Canada, securities regulators are actively deliberating on how best to regulate AI, while in the US, companies are already
This blog post is the first of a new series looking at recent developments in Canadian corporate litigation, with a slight bias towards Ontario. The goal is to provide regular updates on court decisions that are of interest to the
Over the last decade, there has been a notable increase in the number of women on boards and in executive officer positions across Canadian issuers. This progress is reflected in the Canadian Securities Administrators’ (CSA) annual review of
Government institutions and businesses in Canada must soon comply with new legislation aimed at combatting forced labour and child labour or “modern slavery”. Bill S-211, an Act to enact the Fighting Against Forced Labour and Child Labour in Supply