By Patrick Gadson, Partner, Vinson & Elkins After six years of starts and stops, the Securities and Exchange Commission has voted to adopt new rules ushering in universal proxy cards in contested director elections. Now, with the rules set...

  By Sarah E. Fortt I wrote the first part of this series nearly two years ago in the months following the murder of George Floyd when many public companies were making statements and commitments regarding racial justice.  At the time,...

  Michael Verrechia, Managing Director, M&A and Activism Advisory Group, Morrow Sodali, explains how many companies with significant retail shareholder populations don’t do enough to engage with these investors. In his experience of more-than 20 years, he has observed companies...

  Chris Young, Managing Director and Global Head of Contested Situations, Jefferies Financial Group Inc., points out that it’s very easy to come up with justifications for short-term underperformance, which has led the financial community to look at 1-, 3-...

  Mark Grothe, Senior Research Analyst, M&A and Contested Situations, Glass Lewis, a leading proxy advisor that gives investors recommendation on key shareholder votes,  discusses how his firm’s default approach is generally to support SPAC mergers (while still voicing concerns...

  Activist investor Ted White, Managing Director, Legion Partners Asset Management LLC, discusses how years-long engagements with companies that center on cultural nuances can quickly morph into entirely different affairs once a proxy fight begins. “It turns into a little bit...

  Lyndon Park, Partner, Head of Governance Solutions, ICR, explains how ESG concerns are catalyzing massive capital allocation, expected to influence one third of global AUM by 2025.  He emphasizes that newly-public companies have been quick to brush up on...

  Phil Denning, Partner, Co-Head of Special Situations, ICR, explains how activism is increasingly part of the conversation with his roster of publicly-treaded clients. Telling the “better story” and thinking deeply about the business case and value case are as...

  Dan Zacchei, Managing Partner, Longacre Square Partners, gives an overview of the “incredibly robust” proxy season so far in 2022. Not only are we seeing activists trying to break up deals, but also campaigns seeking to put companies in...

  Activism isn’t only alive and well – it’s taking new forms that will impact the entire ecosystem, from proxy advisors to bankers to companies themselves. To discuss the market landscape, CorpGov and The Palm Beach Hedge Fund Association hosted...