For years there’s been a debate over universal proxy cards. The SEC hasn’t acted on its 2016 proposal. But according to this press release, we now we have the first US-incorporated company using one – SandRidge Energy. The proxy card names all SandRidge nominees and all Icahn Capital nominees – but Carl Icahn still sent a separate card with only the dissidents listed.
In its latest communication to shareholders, the company stresses that shareholders should use its card to vote for all company nominees and two (of seven) independent Icahn Capital nominees.
Perhaps this shows the strategy & gamesmanship that can be played with universal proxies? Maybe Sandridge knew it wouldn’t win a clean sweep – and wanted to facilitate vote splitting.
Corp Fin “Bedbug Letters”: Now Promptly Available on Edgar
Corp Fin has a longstanding practice of refusing to process registration statements with “serious deficiencies.” In the past, the Staff would send a “bedbug letter” to the company telling them to try again – and these letters would show up on Edgar 20 business days after the Staff completed its filing review. But in an effort to enhance transparency, Corp Fin recently announced that it’ll now post these letters on the company’s Edgar page within 10 calendar days. And as noted in this Cooley blog, the letters won’t beat around the bush:
The public release of these letters “will make it clear that the Division believes the filing under consideration is not minimally compliant with statutory or regulatory requirements.” Just to ensure there’s no mistaking it—and, some might say, to raise the humiliation quotient—these letters “will appear in companies’ filing histories as SEC STAFF LETTER: SERIOUS DEFICIENCIES.”
SCOTUS: No Tolling for Successive Class Actions
On Monday, the US Supreme Court unanimously held that a pending class action tolls the statute of limitation only for individual claims – not for successive class actions. Justice Ginsburg’s opinion in China Agritech v. Resh benefits companies because it effectively caps the period for exposure to class action claims that are premised on the same allegations as an earlier claim.
This particular case involved alleged violations of Sections 10(b) and 20(a) of the Exchange Act and Rule 10b-5 of the Securities Act – which are subject to a 2-year statute of limitations. We’re posting memos in our “Securities Litigation” Practice Area – here’s an excerpt from Arnold & Porter’s take:
Although the Court acknowledged that the decision could lead to the filing of multiple class-actions, it concluded that this could be beneficial as “efficiency favors early assertion of competing class representative claims” so that “the district court can select the best plaintiff with knowledge of the full array of potential class representatives and class counsel.” In making this observation, the Court noted that the China Agritech litigation was governed by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (PSLRA), which requires parties filing putative class actions to provide notice to potential plaintiffs of the filing of a purported class action, and an opportunity to apply for status as a lead plaintiff. This reflects a congressional preference “for grouping class-representative filings at the outset of litigation.” In this action, shareholder Michael Resh had ignored such opportunities to join either of the prior class action complaints, and the Court saw no reason to allow such a plaintiff “to enter the fray several years after class proceedings first commenced.”
The Court held that the decision would apply to class actions generally. Although the Court’s judgment was unanimous, Justice Sotomayor issued an opinion concurring in the judgment in which she expressed her belief that the holding should be limited to securities class actions governed by the PSLRA. She explained that “instead of adopting a blanket no-tolling-of-class-claims-ever rule outside the PSLRA context, the Court could have held, more narrowly, “that tolling only becomes unavailable for future class claims where class certification is denied for a reason that bears on the suitability of the claims for class treatment.” But as the Court noted, “Endless tolling of a statutes of limitations is not a result envisioned by American Pipe.”
Amazon has amended its corporate governance guidelines to formalize a “Rooney Rule” for director nominees. The company – whose board consists of 7 white men & 3 white women – will now consider at least one woman or minority candidate whenever there’s a board vacancy. In April, Amazon had recommended “against” a shareholder proposal on this topic, but according to this Fortune article – and several notices of exempt solicitations – the company’s unwritten commitment to diversity wasn’t cutting it with employees, shareholders and some members of Congress.
The “Rooney Rule” – named after Dan Rooney, former owner of the Pittsburgh Steelers & former chair of the NFL’s diversity committee – started as an NFL policy that requires teams to interview minority candidates for head coaching and senior operation jobs. It doesn’t give preference to those candidates or impose a quota. This “Harvard Business Review” article discusses Amazon’s new policy – and how to avoid the risk of “tokenism” and resistance to change that can result when there’s a quota mentality. Here’s an excerpt:
Our research, which explored status quo bias, or the desire to preserve the current state of things, found that when there is only one woman or person of color in a finalist pool of job candidates, that candidate stands out so much that they have essentially no chance of being hired. But importantly, we also found that interviewing two women or minority candidates can make the difference and lead to their hiring. So the evidence suggests that mandating diverse candidate slates can improve diversity overall.
This Davis Polk blog notes there are six shareholder proposals on ballots this season that ask for increased board diversity or disclosure about board diversity. And Broc has previously blogged about sample language from other companies that have implemented a “Rooney Rule.”
What’s “Good” Board Diversity? Shareholders Weigh In
This “Rivel Research” survey finds that 67% of institutional investors think that “good” board diversity enhances stock price performance. But “good” diversity is hard to define. It comes down to having board composition that aligns with the company’s business & strategy and helps directors avoid “groupthink.”
About 90% of these shareholders view varied skills & experiences as a “very important” element of diversity – a much higher percentage than gender, geographic, ethnic and age diversity. But at the same time, they don’t think that boards are looking at a broad enough talent pool to find those skill sets: in one shareholder’s words, “the same people get recirculated.”
While most of the shareholders – particularly those in the US – don’t support demographic quotas, almost half of them will vote against boards that lack diversity. And that strategy might be yielding the type of independent thinking they’re looking for, according to this “Harvard Business Review” article:
It’s been found that CEOs who increased the demographic diversity of their boards elicited higher profit margins for the company, but it came at the expense of lower pay for themselves. And using 12 years of data on Fortune 500 companies, other researchers showed that demographically diverse boards are more likely to challenge the authority of the CEO and curtail CEO pay. A McKinsey study showed that only 14% of C-suite executives select board members on the basis of having a “reputation for independent thinking.”
Tomorrow’s Webcast: “D&O Insurance Today”
Tune in tomorrow for the webcast – “D&O Insurance Today” – to hear Holland & Knight’s Tom Bentz, D&O Diary’s Kevin LaCroix, Simpson Thacher’s Joe McLaughlin and Pat Villareal discuss all the latest in the D&O insurance area.
Occasionally, there’s an debate about whether directors should attend senior management meetings. Some think it’s a bad idea because directors might cross the line into operations. This “Stanford Rock Center” article presents the counterargument – by using Netflix as a case-study. At Netflix, directors regularly observe senior management meetings to get an unfiltered understanding of issues & strategies.
Of course, another benefit is that it’s an opportunity for directors to build relationships outside of the C-suite – and it gives them the ability to evaluate senior managers, which can eventually help with CEO succession planning. For more, see our “Checklist: Board Access to Management” – and our “Board Access” Practice Area.
Poll: Should Directors Attend Management Meetings?
Please take our anonymous poll about director attendance at management meetings:
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Director Viewpoints: Anxious About Technology
The main finding from the annual “What Directors Think” survey – by NYSE Governance/Spencer Stuart – is that many directors share an “overwhelming concern” of being ill-equipped to keep up with cyber threats & disruptive technology. Here are five other takeaways:
1. Boards’ main strengths continue to center around strategy & finance – only 12% of directors list IT as a skill
2. Cybersecurity, disruptive innovations & succession planning are the main issues for which directors would seek outside advice
3. Directors are changing their tune about cybersecurity regulations – 60% now think they’re a good idea (compared to 22% last year)
4. Nearly 75% support board diversity efforts
5. 57% of directors say an enhanced brand image and reputation – and a greater ability to attract & retain employees – are big benefits of corporate social responsibility programs…but ESG initiatives are at the bottom of their priorities
Here’s something that I blogged yesterday on our “Proxy Season Blog”: The National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) and other conservative-leaning organizations have launched a new campaign, the “Main Street Investors Coalition” – with a multi-million dollar budget – to limit the influence of large asset managers that they feel wield too much power on ESG initiatives. As we’ve previously blogged, more support from Vanguard is one factor that has led to higher approval rates for ESG proposals – and, as noted in this blog, BlackRock has also urged companies to develop a long-term strategy that accounts for their societal impact.
This Axios article says that the group’s first focus will be writing studies & op-eds backing up their positions – which is interesting in light of recent DOL guidance that restricts ERISA fiduciaries from pursuing ESG initiatives in the absence of data showing that the initiatives will lead to higher returns. It’s not clear yet whether this group will also pursue the tactic of submitting its own shareholder proposals, in order to beat ESG activists to the punch.
The Axios article notes that this campaign comes at a time when “shareholder advocacy” has been producing more social change among companies than legislation. And here’s an excerpt from an op-ed by Bloomberg’s Matt Levine:
The interesting development will be if this (pro-corporate, anti-environmentalist, etc.) group makes common cause with the more left-ish critics of institutional investors who worry that they create antitrust problems. Having most of corporate America controlled by a handful of giant institutions: It makes a lot of people nervous.
Deloitte Fined $500k for Faulty Audit
Yesterday, as noted in this article, the PCAOB levied a hefty $500k upon Deloitte for missing material accounting errors in three consecutive audits of a client…
Memorial Day Weekend
May we have lasting gratitude and memories of those who’ve sacrificed for our country.
Some companies decide to ban reporters from their annual meetings. The risk in doing this is that it backfires and draws even more negative publicity. Here’s one example of negative press due to a ban – and this MarketWatch article looks at another recent uproar. Nell Minow is quoted:
It’s not unusual for companies to say that meetings are for shareholders only. But I think that it’s best practice for them to allow press in so that shareholders who can’t be there in person can learn about the sole opportunity shareholders have to see the board and executives in person – how they present themselves when they control the process, and how they respond to questions when they do not. If the answer is cutting off access to the press, the obvious question is, what are they trying to hide?
Our “Checklist: Annual Meetings – Dealing with the Press” outlines logistics to think about if you want media coverage at your meeting – or if you don’t. It also considers the possibility of using rules of conduct to limit the type of coverage – e.g. a ban on recording devices. But this article shows that those types of restrictions should also be handled carefully.
Annual Meetings: Be Consistent With Your Admission Policies
It’s always smart to be consistent when restricting shareholder attendance at your annual meeting. Some companies require beneficial holders to show proof of ownership in order to gain admittance. But if you’re going to use that as a means to prohibit people from being admitted, it can be risky to make exceptions in exchange for a vow of silence.
This article highlights that risk – here’s an excerpt:
After the attorneys summoned security guards to physically block Danhof from the meeting room – and threatened to call the police – Danhof gave up and opted to file a complaint with the SEC. He had begun to suspect that the situation involved more than a simple miscommunication when the company offered to let him attend if he didn’t make any comments or attempt to address the meeting.
“That leads me to believe that they did some quick research, they figured out I was there, that I was an activist investor, that I ask tough questions and put CEOs on the spot, and they wanted to do whatever they could to make sure their CEO didn’t have to answer the question,” he said.
Recently, CII responded to MSCI’s proposal to weight companies in its indexes based on whether they have unequal voting structures – i.e. “dual class” companies. Since CII wants alignment between economic & voting rights, it’s not surprising that they support the proposal. But – consistent with these letters that CII recently sent to two IPO candidates – they suggest exemptive relief for companies that adopt a 7-year sunset provision.
CII also thinks that it would be reasonable for a sunset structure to be renewable for additional 7-year terms if approved by a majority of the shares with inferior voting rights – and that existing index constituents should have 3 years to adopt a sunset provision before getting dinged by MSCI’s weighting feature. CII’s response differs from BlackRock’s. As I recently described on “The Mentor Blog,” BlackRock wants indexes to reflect the entire investable marketplace.
Sustainability: More Talk Than Action?
This Ceres report finds that few companies are taking a “systemic approach” to sustainability. Sure, lots of proxy statements make reference to sustainability as a board responsibility, but just 13% of large companies have formalized that in committee charters and/or disclosed board-management engagement – and 83% of boards don’t have a director with sustainability expertise. Similarly, a third say they link executive pay to sustainability – but most don’t describe the specific goals that are incentivized.
Ceres found that companies that are more precise in these areas are at least twice as likely to have strong sustainability commitments. On each topic, the report highlights disclosure from companies with leading practices – a good starting point if you’re looking to bolster your own systems.
Ceres & “The B Team” also released this “Climate Smart Primer” to help directors understand the potential material impact of sustainability issues…
“Bipartisan Banking Act” Will Soon Become Law
Here’s a nice infographic from Davis Polk about the “Bipartisan Banking Act” – which the House passed yesterday – that makes big changes to the regulation of banking organizations. It’s expected to be signed by the President shortly. Also see this MoFo memo…
Here’s something that I blogged yesterday on CompensationStandards.com: A member of Congress is now using pay ratio data to examine income inequality. This study from Rep. Keith Ellison’s staff (D-Minn) looked at pay ratios from 225 large companies that were responsible for employing more than 14 million workers. When it comes to “extreme gaps,” it “names names” – and it also seems to assume that companies that excluded portions of their workforce were doing so to keep their ratio down.
This article describes the findings – here are the main ones:
1. Pay ratios ranged from 2:1 to 5000:1. The average was 339:1 – compared to 20:1 in 1965
2. 188 companies had a ratio of more than 100:1 – so the CEO’s pay could be used to pay the yearly wage for more than 100 workers
3. Median employees in all but 6 companies would need to work at least one 45-year career to earn what their CEO makes in a single year
4. The consumer discretionary industry had the highest average pay ratio – 977:1
I think it’s easy to become numb to high CEO pay when you work with it all the time and you’re focused on the mechanics of programs and disclosures. This study is a reminder that no matter how useless pay ratio seems to companies, people outside of this field are paying attention – and they’re synthesizing the data not just to compare companies, but to show that outsized executive pay is a pervasive issue that interests many.
Pay Ratio: Customer Fallout?
As highlighted in Rep. Keith Ellison’s study, the consumer discretionary industry is shaping up to have the highest average pay ratios – 977:1 among the S&P 500. That compares to a supposedly ideal ratio among consumers of 7:1, according to this study. And while the high numbers aren’t surprising given the workforce for most of those companies, this WSJ article says it could impact their bottom line. Here’s the high points:
A recent study found that consumers are significantly less likely to buy from companies with high CEO pay ratios. First, it found that sales declined for Swiss companies when their high pay ratios were publicized.
In a follow-up experiment, people had the chance to win a gift card to one of two retailers. In the absence of pay-ratio information, 68% of people chose one retailer’s card and 32% chose the other. But when participants were informed that the first of those retailers had a 705:1 pay ratio and the second had a 3:1 ratio, just 44% of people chose gift cards from the first retailer while 56% chose the second.
It’ll be interesting to see whether this holds true in “real life,” where customers probably aren’t looking at pay ratios at the same time they’re making a purchase – and may not have the option to buy from a company with a 3:1 ratio. The lowest ratios I’ve seen for that industry are around 100:1.
By the way, here’s this CNBC piece entitled “Companies with Closer CEO Pay Ratios May Generate Higher Profit Per Worker.”
Last week, two Parliament committees issued their final report on the collapse of Carillion – which had been the UK’s second-largest construction group. The situation has been called the British “Enron” and could lead to sweeping reform. As described in this ”Financial Times” article, the report comes down hard on the Big Four auditors – and also blames the implosion on the board and lax regulations. It includes these findings:
– Carillion’s directors elected to increase its dividend every year, come what may. Even as the company very publicly began to unravel, the board was concerned with increasing and protecting generous executive bonuses.
– Government should refer the statutory audit market to the Competition and Markets Authority. Possible outcomes considered should include breaking up the audit arms of the Big Four, or splitting audit functions from non-audit services. The lack of competition in the audit market “creates conflicts of interest at every turn.”
– In its failure to question Carillion’s financial judgements and information, KMPG was “complicit” in the company’s “questionable” accounting practices, “complacently signing off its directors’ increasingly fantastical figures” over its 19 year tenure as Carilion’s auditor.
– The regulators are wholly ineffective – they only started investigating after the company collapsed and are more interested in apportioning blame than in proactively challenging companies and averting avoidable failures.
– The regulators’ mandate should be changed to ensure that all directors who exert influence over financial statements can be investigated and punished.
Also, the British have a way with words. Here are comments from one MP:
“Same old story. Same old greed. A board of directors too busy stuffing their mouths with gold to show any concern for the welfare of their workforce or their pensioners. This is a disgraceful example of how much of our capitalism is allowed to operate, waved through by a cozy club of auditors, conflicted at every turn. Government urgently needs to come to Parliament with radical reforms to our creaking system of corporate accountability. British industry is too important to be left in the hands of the likes of the shysters at the top of Carillion.”
Some advocates have been pushing companies to put together “integrated reports.” To illustrate how easy they think it is to do so, a couple of researchers recently prepared this 40-page mock “Integrated Report” for ExxonMobil (starts at page 18). As they describe in this Forbes article, they used publicly-available info – the 10-K, proxy statement, citizenship report, annual report, etc. – and said it took them about 40 hours to edit & organize it into the framework.
Some might say that the 40-hour estimate to draft an integrated report isn’t realistic. Perhaps their effort overlooks the amount of time associated with ensuring the various components of an integrated report work together appropriately – and all the layers of review that a company (who has real potential liability for the end product) must go through.
By the way, according to this announcement, the next step for these researchers is to create an “Integrated Report Generator Tool” – which will “provide stakeholders with a way to create integrated reports.”
Poll: Challenges of Drafting Integrated Reports
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Bank Examiners Can’t Override Privilege: 7-Firm Memo
This “7-Firm Memo” asserts that bank examiners aren’t entitled to privileged material from financial institutions – and shouldn’t condition favorable examination results & relationships upon “voluntary” waivers. The analysis relies heavily on recognition of the attorney-client privilege by the SEC & DOJ. Both agencies have said they don’t require privilege waivers in order to deem a company “cooperative.”
Every few years, we survey annual meeting practices (we’ve conducted about a dozen surveys on this & related topics). Here’s the results from our latest one:
1. To attend our annual meeting, our company:
– Requires pre-registration by shareholders – 16%
– Encourages pre-registration by shareholders but it’s not required – 8%
– Requires shareholders to bring an entry pass that was included in the proxy materials (along with ID) – 14%
– Encourages shareholders to bring an entry pass but it’s not required – 11%
– Will allow any shareholder to attend if they bring proof of ownership – 76%
– Will allow anyone to attend even if they don’t have proof of ownership – 11%
2. During our annual meeting, our company:
– We hand out rules of conduct that limit each shareholder’s time to no more than 2 minutes – 30%
– We hand out rules of conduct that limit each shareholder’s time to no more than 3 minutes – 35%
– We hand out rules of conduct that limit each shareholder’s time to no more than 5 minutes – 5%
– We announce a policy that limits each shareholder’s time to no more than 2 minutes (but rules are not handed out) – 3%
– We announce a policy that limit each shareholder’s time to no more than 3 minutes (but rules are not handed out) – 0%
– We announce a policy that limit each shareholder’s time to no more than 5 minutes (but rules are not handed out) – 3%
– There is no limit on how long a shareholder can talk (subject to the inherent authority of the Chair to cut off discussion at any time) – 24%
3. For our annual meeting, our company:
– Provides an audio webcast of the physical meeting, including posting an archive – 24%
– Provides an audio webcast of the physical meeting, but does not post an archive – 3%
– Has provided an audio webcast of the physical meeting in the past, but discontinued that practice – 3%
– Is considering providing an audio webcast of the physical meeting but haven’t decided yet – 0%
– Provides a video webcast of the physical meeting (or is considering doing so) – 8%
– Does not provide an audio nor a video webcast of the physical meeting – 62%
4. At our annual meeting, our company:
– Announces the preliminary results of the vote on each matter (unless special circumstances arise such as a very close vote) – 89%
– Doesn’t announce the preliminary results of the vote on each matter – 11%
5. For our annual meeting:
– Our CEO makes a presentation and takes Q&A from the audience – 90%
– Our CEO makes a presentation but no Q&A from the audience – 3%
– We are considering revising next year’s format to eliminate the CEO presentation – 3%
– We are considering revising next year’s format to eliminate the Q&A – 3%
– We are considering revising next year’s format other than the CEO presentation and Q&A but haven’t decided yet – 3%
Also see the transcript for our recent webcast: “Conduct of the “Annual Meeting.”
Board Diversity: Some Progress
This Bloomberg article highlights stories of boards who are achieving some diversity by appointing people who are first-time directors – and who aren’t sitting or retired CEOs. Here’s an excerpt:
Waste management company Republic Services Inc. has been looking for diverse directors since 2011, after a 2008 merger with Allied Waste Industries left it with an all-male board, including one black man. “Change meant bringing people into the waste business who had other experiences,” says CEO Don Slager. “Prior to the merger, frankly, they were just a bunch of garbage men.”
As part of this push, the company enacted some new policies, including a mandatory retirement age of 73 for directors. A variety of experience also was a priority, Slager says. Candidates ideally would bring expertise in areas not already represented, such as logistics and financial reporting. “When you drop a layer below the C-suite, it opens you up to a whole new group of people who are the future leaders of these organizations,” he says.
While the article notes that in 2017, 45% of appointees to S&P 500 boards were novice directors – and a majority of incoming directors were women or minorities – it also states that white men still hold more than 75% of these seats. Not to detract from the companies highlighted as gender diversity success stories in the article – because I do think they’re being thoughtful about this and making progress – but they’ve actually just achieved the “three women” benchmark that Broc’s blogged about…
Age Diversity: Stats on Boards’ “Next Generation”
According to this PwC article, 90% of directors say that age diversity is important – a higher number than gender, race & other forms of diversity. Yet “young directors” – defined as anyone 50 or under – held only 6% of S&P 500 board seats in 2017, and the average age of independent directors increased to 63.
Not surprisingly, the information technology, consumer discretionary & consumer staples industries are the most likely to have at least one director – and technology expertise and active industry knowledge are commonly-cited skills.
Also see this EY report on the traits of first-time directors in 2017.
There’s nothing hotter right now than data analytics. “Big data” can yield some big opportunities – so it would seem that boards would seek this information out when strategizing the big picture. At a minimum, boards should be at least oversee how their companies are using data analytics. This KPMG memo throws out some key questions for boards to consider:
— How is the data being collected and organized within the company and who is involved? Ultimately, who is responsible?
— Can the data be trusted? How is the quality and integrity of the data assessed?
— Does the company have a data ethics policy to protect the brand reputation and reduce legal risk?
— Does the company have the right talent, skills, and resources required to implement/manage its D&A activities?
— Has the company scoped out the near-term and longer-term opportunities for its use of D&A, including financial reporting and predictive analytics?
Trends in Board Cybersecurity Oversight
This recent EY webcast about the board’s cybersecurity oversight role included a poll of director & executive attendees. It appears that most companies aren’t making big changes in response to the SEC’s cybersecurity guidance from earlier this year. Here’s what else they found:
1. Which emerging technology does your board expect to have the greatest impact on the company’s strategy?
– Artificial Intelligence (AI)/Machine Learning and Internet of Things (IoT) – tied at 23%
– Blockchain and Robotic Process automation – tied at 19%
2. As a board member, which of the following do you think is most important to enhance the company’s cyber maturity posture?
– Enhancing data protection and privacy policies – 32%
– Continuously educating and testing the workforce on cybersecurity related matters – 22%
– Improving cyber threat intelligence gathering – 18%
3. How often are your board and management team conducting tabletop exercises and crisis scenario exercises?
– Annually – 31%
– Ad hoc basis/rarely – 30%
– Twice a year or never – tied at 18%
4. Given the recent SEC cybersecurity guidance, do you expect a material change in your disclosure controls process and procedures during your next quarter-end?
– No – 60%
– Yes – 40%
Delaware has amended its data breach law for the first time since enacting it in 2005 (see this Pepper Hamilton memo). To help companies comply with the new requirements, it’s now launched this website with template forms. According to this Morgan Lewis blog, the forms can be used for the required data breach notices to the Delaware Attorney General as well as consumers – and the website also provides a link for consumers to file complaints.
