Topic: Shareholder Activism

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Putting the “green” in green investing

Photo of Brandon SchuppBy Brandon Schupp on Posted in Corporate Governance, Securities, Shareholder Activism
The past several years have seen “green investing” rise to prominence. In 2020, environmental, social and governance (ESG) funds captured $51.1 billion of net new capital from investors, a fifth consecutive annual record. At the same time, companies are facing growing scrutiny of their environmental practices from institutional shareholders and activists. While these trends indicate … Continue reading

ESG & Shareholder Activism: Ready or Not, Here it Comes

Photo of Katherine MacPhail (Calgary)By Katherine MacPhail (Calgary) on Posted in Corporate Governance, Securities, Shareholder Activism
“ESG” stands for Environmental, Social and Governance and describes a handful of criteria used by both issuers and investors to focus on a corporation’s impact and activity regarding topics like environmental protection, climate change, support for the local and global community, diversity in hiring and advancement, and employee compensation. This investment methodology, once considered novel, … Continue reading

Social Media and the Retail Investor: A Regulator’s Dilemma

Photo of Kassem DahroujBy Kassem Dahrouj on Posted in Securities, Shareholder Activism
With the growing accessibility of “do-it-yourself” investment technology, it should come as no surprise that retail investing has been on the rise. In fact, the Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) recently published a study (the Study) which reveals that there has been a sharp increase in retail investing since 2015, and especially since the onset of … Continue reading

A Recap of the OSC Decision on the Minimum Tender Requirement under the New Canadian Takeover Bid Regime

Photo of Ivona ZegreanBy Ivona Zegrean on Posted in Corporate Governance, Securities, Shareholder Activism
On February 23, 2021, the Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) released its reasons in ESW Capital, LLC, 2021 ONSEC 7 (the ESW Decision), in which the OSC considered the availability of an exemption from the minimum tender requirement for takeover bids. The ESW Decision dismissed the proposed bidder’s application for exemptive relief, but provided important clarifications … Continue reading

Climate Change and the Need for Sound Corporate Governance

Photo of Adamo FucileBy Adamo Fucile on Posted in Securities, Shareholder Activism
The United Nations’ Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change recently released a troubling report, highlighting the irreversible consequences of climate change on humanity. This study is simply adding to the pressures set forth by governments and other entities such as the Task Force on Climate Change-Related Financial Disclosure (TFCD) and BlackRock to hold corporations more responsible … Continue reading

SPACtivism: A New Trend Looming in Shareholder Activism

Photo of Brandon SchuppPhoto of Nader Hasan (Toronto)By Brandon Schupp and Nader Hasan (Toronto) on Posted in Proxy Battles, Securities, Shareholder Activism
The past 18 months have seen a number of developments in North American capital markets, with trends such as the rise of meme stocks and the self-proclaimed retail investor revolution dominating many headlines. Another interesting, if less novel, trend that emerged in 2020 was a resurgence of special purpose acquisition corporations (“SPACs”). In 2020, more … Continue reading

CP Rail Supports an ESG-Related Shareholder Proposal Which Includes Annual Advisory Vote by Shareholders on a Climate Action Plan

Photo of Heidi ReinhartBy Heidi Reinhart and The Special Situations Team on Posted in Corporate Governance, Shareholder Activism
TCI Fund Management Limited (TCI) recently successfully submitted a climate change-related shareholder proposal (the Proposal) to Canadian Pacific Railway Limited (CP) to be voted on at CP’s upcoming 2021 annual general meeting of shareholders.  As stated in its circular for the meeting, CP supports TCI’s Proposal and recommends shareholders vote in favour of it.  Of … Continue reading

A Review of 2020: A Catalyst for Corporate Governance Change

Photo of Jennifer McPherson (Calgary)By Jennifer McPherson (Calgary) on Posted in Corporate Governance, Shareholder Activism
The COVID-19 pandemic coupled with the fight against anti-Black systemic racism has had a significant and potentially long-lasting impact on corporate governance. In its report entitled “The New Abnormal: How 2020 Has Changed the Future of Corporate Governance” (the Report), Kingsdale Advisors (Kingsdale) notes that directors have faced a string of challenges in 2020 that … Continue reading

Global Trends in Shareholder Activism Amidst COVID-19

By The Special Situations Team on Posted in M&A, Shareholder Activism
Laptops with dashboard metrics on screenAccording to a review of shareholder activism by Lazard (the Lazard Review) that examined global activism trends in the first half of 2020 (H1 2020), economic uncertainty brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic, coupled with heightened awareness of widening socioeconomic inequalities around the world, has altered shareholder activism activity globally. We highlight some important trends … Continue reading

ISS includes Economic Value Added in its Compensation Reports

Photo of Denise Gan (Toronto)By Denise Gan (Toronto) on Posted in Compliance, Corporate Governance, Proxy Battles, Shareholder Activism
Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) announced earlier this year that, in its 2019 proxy research reports, it will be displaying financial ratios derived from a base measure called Economic Value Added (EVA). The EVA ratios will initially be used for informational purposes only, meaning they will not factor in to say-on-pay voting recommendations or evaluations of … Continue reading

A UK dispute sheds light on the duties of a dissident director

Photo of Nader Hasan (Toronto)By Nader Hasan (Toronto) on Posted in Proxy Battles, Shareholder Activism
A recent decision of the UK’s High Court — Stobart v Tinkler [2019] EWHC 258 (Comm) — has been released following a dispute between directors of a large infrastructure company (the “Company”). The decision, and the circumstances preceding it, serve as a cautionary tale about the duties of a dissident director and of board members … Continue reading

Shareholder Activism Reaches Record Levels

By The Special Situations Team on Posted in Corporate Governance, Proxy Battles, Shareholder Activism
Activist Insight recently published the sixth edition of its annual report, entitled “The Activist Investing Annual Review 2019” (the “Review”). The Review analyzes recent global shareholder activism trends, forecasts expected developments in 2019, and highlights and compares jurisdictional data. Oh, Canada: Increased Canadian Activism As the Review outlines, 2018 was a notable year in Canada … Continue reading

When defamation in hostile proceedings leads to serious consequences

Photo of Nader Hasan (Toronto)By Nader Hasan (Toronto) on Posted in Litigation, Proxy Battles, Shareholder Activism, Uncategorized
It will come as no surprise to those who have participated in a proxy fight to learn that these disputes can be heated affairs.   Parties to a fight will routinely seek to discredit the other side to bolster their own narrative or otherwise gain a strategic advantage.  In such an atmosphere, it can be difficult … Continue reading

Access to Corporate Records Amidst Controversy

By Hugo Margoc (Toronto) on Posted in Corporate Governance, Shareholder Activism
The rights of shareholders and directors to access corporate books and records is undisputed, but what about the rights of a former Chief Executive Officer, especially when the termination was contentious? US Jurisprudence: In the United States, a recent decision by the Delaware Court of Chancery dealt with this scenario. In that case, the CEO … Continue reading

Lesson Learned: An Examination of Trends in Shareholder Proposals

Photo of Peter Valente (Toronto)By Peter Valente (Toronto) on Posted in Proxy Access, Proxy Battles, Shareholder Activism
Shareholder proposals are often viewed as an essential tool for maintaining corporate accountability, but what role do they play in shaping corporate governance? ISS Analytics recently published a study  (the Study) that reviewed the impact of shareholder proposals on corporate governance practices among U.S. companies since 2000. The Study offers helpful insights into shifting trends … Continue reading

Webinar – Corporate governance, shareholder activism, and hostile M&A: Key developments in 2018 and a look ahead

By Joe Bricker on Posted in Corporate Governance, M&A, Proxy Access, Proxy Battles, Securities, Shareholder Activism, Short selling, Uncategorized
Walied Soliman and Orestes Pasparakis, co-chairs of Norton Rose Fulbright’s Canadian Special Situations team, will host a 60-minute webinar on corporate governance, shareholder activism, and hostile M&A on Tuesday, February 12, 2019 at 12 p.m. EST. To sign up, please click here. Our Special Situations team played a leading role in some of the most … Continue reading

CEO Activism: A Double-Edged Sword?

Photo of Russell Dufault (Toronto)By Russell Dufault (Toronto) on Posted in Compliance, Corporate Governance, Shareholder Activism
In a recent study published on SSRN by the Rock Center for Corporate Governance at Stanford University, authors David F. Larcker, Stephen Miles, Brian Tayan and Kim Wright-Violich argue that CEO activism – the practice of CEOs taking public positions on environmental, social and political issues not directly related to their business – is a … Continue reading

Holding up the deal: the threat of “bumpitrage” to M&A

Photo of Trevor ZeylBy Trevor Zeyl on Posted in Compliance, Shareholder Activism
Considering the robust global M&A markets of the last few years, it is unsurprising that activist investors have increasingly sought to leverage these transactions for their own gain. To that end, shareholder activists have developed a variety of M&A-related strategies. Most commonly, they either seek to catalyze transactions by pressuring companies into a merger or … Continue reading

Kingsdale Releases 2018 Proxy Season Review

Photo of Peter Valente (Toronto)By Peter Valente (Toronto) on Posted in Proxy Battles, Securities, Shareholder Activism, Uncategorized
Kingsdale Advisors has released its annual Proxy Season Review for 2018. The Review examines trends observed in 2018, predicts issues on the horizon, and provides advice to both issuers and activists in the marketplace. In what follows, we pick out just a few of the important trends that emerge from Kingsdale’s analysis. The complete report … Continue reading

Activist Insight Monthly features interview with Co-Chairs of Canadian Special Situations team

By Joe Bricker on Posted in M&A, Proxy Battles, Shareholder Activism, Short selling
This month’s edition of Activist Insight Monthly, which focuses on Canada, features an in-depth interview with Walied Soliman and Orestes Pasparakis, Co-Chairs of Norton Rose Fulbright’s Canadian Special Situations team. The interview focuses on recent trends our team is seeing in the Canadian marketplace, including activist short selling, settlements, and the continued rise of “nice” activists. The … Continue reading

Norton Rose Fulbright’s Canadian Special Situations Team ranks in the top 10 of global legal advisors for shareholder activist campaigns

Photo of Trevor ZeylBy Trevor Zeyl on Posted in Proxy Battles, Shareholder Activism
Global law firm Norton Rose Fulbright’s Canadian Special Situations Team has ranked in the top 10 of global legal advisors advising both companies and activists in shareholder activist campaigns and is the only Canadian firm to be represented on the global ranking. To view the Global Shareholder Activism Scorecard, please click here.… Continue reading

Exploring the Link between Gender, Governance, and Shareholder Activism

By The Special Situations Team on Posted in Corporate Governance, Shareholder Activism
A study conducted by global consultancy firm Alvarez and Marsal (A&M) showed that companies with more women on their boards attract fewer activist investors. In particular, the study, which surveyed 1,854 public groups, revealed that companies not targeted by hedge fund activists had on average 13.4 per cent more women on their boards. Despite being … Continue reading

OSC Statement of Priorities

By Danny Urquhart on Posted in Corporate Governance, Proxy Battles, Shareholder Activism
On July 5, 2018, the Ontario Securities Commission (“OSC”) released its annual Statement of Priorities (the “Statement”) for the financial year to end March 31, 2019. The Statement outlines the most pressing issues that the OSC hopes to address in connection with the administration of the Securities Act, regulations and rules. While investor protection is … Continue reading
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