Corporate governance - Vigil

A description of a separation of ownership and control in America’s largest companies was the best-known feature of Adolf Berle and Gardiner Means’ renowned 1932 book The Modern Corporation and Private Property. Diffuse share ownership and the managerial autonomy which tends to follow on from it would become hallmarks of American corporate governance.

Trans Mountain Pipeline Should Be Project No. 1 for the Canada Infrastructure Bank: Globe and Mail Op-Ed

On July 10, 2018, the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) reaffirmed the application of the securities laws to social media use

On July 12, 2018, the General Court of the European Union dismissed Goldman Sachs’s appeal of a decision finding it jointly and severally liable for the cartel conduct of a portfolio company held by funds controlled by Goldman Sachs.

Symantec Corp., the world’s biggest maker of cyber-security software, said it will cut as much as 8 percent of its workforce after giving a forecast for quarterly profit and revenue that fell short of analysts’ estimates. The shares tumbled 9 percent in extended trading.

“Corporate Governance extends beyond compliance with rule and protocols. It is also about giving the company the power to overcome significant challenges and seize opportunities that build enterprise value. Truly effective governance requires a robust information infrastructure that supports transparency and timely information flow.”

Taking potshots at complicated bank balance sheets isn’t always a winner.

The continuing stream of corporate wrongdoing and risk failures—at Wells Fargo & Co., Volkswagen AG, Equifax, Uber Technologies, Mylan, and others—gives new urgency to two questions: Should boards have broader policies for triggering compensation adjustments, forfeitures, and repayment of past compensation—generally referred to as recoupments or clawbacks—when corporate harm is demonstrated? How should boards exercise discretion when they implement such policies?

Recently, the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs held a hearing on various legislative proposals aimed at improving corporate governance, including the Corporate Governance Reform and Transparency Act, H.R. 4015, that would regulate the activities of proxy advisory firms like Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) and Glass Lewis.

Despite a political agenda packed with important issues like tariffs, immigration and a Supreme Court nomination, there have been a number of recent federal and state legislative developments relating to public company corporate governance topics that are of interest.