Author Archives: Harvard Law School Forum on Corporate Governance and Financial Regulation

Attorney-Whistleblowing and Conflicting Regulatory Regimes

In my latest article, Conflicted Counselors: Retaliation Protections for Attorney-Whistleblowers in an Inconsistent Regulatory Regime, I examine the ever-evolving issue of attorney-whistleblowing, the reporting requirements under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (“SOX”) of attorneys representing issuer-clients, the potential for conflict of these requirements with the rules of professional conduct in various states, and the lack of retaliation […]

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Court of Chancery Again Looks to Merger Price in Appraisal Ruling

The Delaware Court of Chancery this week held that the “fair value” payable in a statutory appraisal proceeding was less than the merger price. LongPath Capital, LLC v. Ramtron Int’l Corp., C.A. No. 8094-VCP (Del. Ch. June 30, 2015). The decision adds to a growing body of Delaware case law confirming the importance of the […]

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Proxy Access: The 2015 Proxy Season and Beyond

Although the 2015 annual meeting season is still winding down, there is no doubt that proxy access has gained considerable momentum and will remain a front-and-center corporate governance issue for the foreseeable future. For the boards of directors of the many companies who were bystanders on this issue for the 2015 proxy season, the question […]

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Posted in Boards of Directors, Corporate Elections & Voting, Institutional Investors, Practitioner Publications | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Proxy Access: The 2015 Proxy Season and Beyond

DGCL Amendments Authorize Exclusive Forum Provisions and Prohibit Fee-Shifting Provisions

A great deal of attention has been paid over the past few years to efforts made by corporations to control in which courts internal corporate claims may be brought or to compel unsuccessful plaintiffs in internal corporate claims to pay the defendant’s attorneys’ fees and costs. Recently enacted amendments [1] to the Delaware General Corporation […]

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SEC and CFTC Turn to Swaps and Security-Based Swaps Enforcement

The week of June 15, 2015 saw two of the first publicly announced enforcement actions brought by the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (“CFTC”) to enforce security-based swap and swap regulatory requirements under Title VII of the Dodd-Frank Act. The SEC accepted an offer of settlement from a web-based […]

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Posted in Derivatives, Practitioner Publications, Securities Litigation & Enforcement, Securities Regulation | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on SEC and CFTC Turn to Swaps and Security-Based Swaps Enforcement

Fed’s Volcker Relief for Foreign Funds

On Friday, June 12, 2015, the Federal Reserve (Fed) began addressing the question of whether foreign funds should be considered “banking entities” under the Bank Holding Company Act (BHCA), and therefore be subject to the Volcker Rule’s proprietary trading restriction. The Fed’s guidance (provided in the form of a “Frequently Asked Question,” or FAQ) clarifies […]

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Posted in Banking & Financial Institutions, Financial Regulation, International Corporate Governance & Regulation, Practitioner Publications | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Fed’s Volcker Relief for Foreign Funds

SEC Proposes Rules on Mandatory Clawback Policies

On July 1, 2015, the Securities and Exchange Commission proposed rules to require issuers of securities listed on U.S. stock exchanges to adopt and enforce clawback policies applicable to incentive-based compensation received by current and former executives in the three-year period preceding the date the issuer is required to prepare an accounting restatement due to […]

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Clawbacks of Erroneously Awarded Compensation

A few months ago, the baseball world celebrated the 90th birthday of Yogi Berra, the legendary former catcher and manager for the New York Yankees. Yogi Berra is well-known for his witty comments, often referred to as “Yogi-isms.” [1] Several come to mind today, as we consider another rulemaking related to executive compensation. “Pair up […]

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Does the SEC’s New “Compensation Actually Paid” Help Shareholders?

On April 29, 2015, the SEC released proposed rules on public company pay‐for‐performance disclosure mandated under the Dodd‐Frank Act. Pay Governance has analyzed the proposed rules and the implications for our clients’ proxy disclosures and pay‐for‐performance explanations to investors. We are concerned about the validity of describing a company’s pay‐for‐performance alignment using the disclosure mandated […]

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Making Executive Compensation More Accountable

When it comes to compensation, Americans believe you should earn your money. They also believe, just as strongly, that you should not keep what you did not earn. It’s fundamental to our values. However, when companies have to restate their financial statements because they violated applicable reporting requirements, their executives may not be required to […]

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