It seems likely the year ahead will see only a modest rebound in mergers & acquisitions (M&A) activity. Among the challenges that remain for 2024, one challenge to further deal activity is the potential shortage of attractive...more
The past year has been broadly characterized as one of limited public market activity and rising interest rates putting a dampener on access to capital. For the oil & gas industry, the volume of debt & equity offerings...more
The past 12 months have been some of the trickiest to navigate for oil & gas companies in recent memory. Despite high energy prices and record cashflows, there is still uncertainty about what future paths to growth might look...more
12/21/2023
/ Acquisitions ,
Capital Raising ,
Energy Sector ,
FERC ,
Financing ,
Investment ,
Mergers ,
Oil & Gas ,
Private Equity ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Renewable Energy
M&A Developments -
M&A activity has been robust in 2015 and is on track for another record year. According to Thomson Reuters, global M&A activity exceeded $3.2 trillion, with almost 32,000 deals during the first three...more
Top 10 Topics for Directors in 2016 U.S. public companies face a host of challenges as they enter 2016. Here is our annual list of hot topics for the boardroom in the coming year...
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Shareholder Activism -
Shareholder activism and “suggestivism” continue to gain traction. With the success that activists have experienced throughout 2015, coupled with significant new money being allocated to activist...more
The increasing cost of healthcare is a significant concern for companies that provide health care benefits to their employees. With certain key provisions of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, more commonly known...more
The boards of all public companies should consider adopting a forum selection bylaw, if they have not already put one in place. The purpose of such a provision is to designate an exclusive venue for stockholder derivative...more
Bill Ackman’s public disclosure earlier this year of confidential JC Penney board deliberations not only outraged his fellow directors but also stunned the corporate community. His actions, however, were not without...more
Shareholder activism is on the rise. Through the first three quarters of 2013, activist investors submitted 91 initial Schedule 13D filings, well on pace to eclipse the 109 filings made in all of 2012. In addition, proxy...more
In addition to heightened focus on director tenure, companies are facing increasing pressure to diversify their boards. The SEC requires companies to disclose whether and how the board or nominating committee considers...more
The Wall Street Journal recently highlighted director tenure in an article titled “The 40-Year Club: America’s Longest Serving Directors.” While the article noted that fewer than 30 public company directors have at least 40...more
Whether to separate the CEO and chairman positions is one of the most hotly debated issues in corporate governance. During the 2013 proxy season, calls for an independent board chair were the second most frequent proposal...more
Despite the continuing legal challenges and political hardball, as well as the delays and technical glitches, it appears that the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, more commonly known as Obamacare, is here to stay. ...more
Executive compensation is a topic that just won’t go away, particularly with pay disparity and pay for performance regulations still looming. We highlight below some of the matters directors should be considering as they...more
12/26/2013
/ Board of Directors ,
CEOs ,
Chief Compliance Officers ,
Clawbacks ,
Compensation Committee ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Directors ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Executive Compensation ,
Pay Ratio ,
Pay-for-Performance ,
Proxy Advisors ,
Proxy Voting Guidelines ,
Sarbanes-Oxley ,
Say-on-Pay ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
Constantly changing and overlapping legislative and regulatory requirements are weighing down corporations and usurping more and more board time. It is a telling sign when, according to a recent survey, directors ranked...more
In this alert we summarize the most important recent additions and amendments to the Delaware General Corporation Law (the “DGCL”) and the Delaware Limited Liability Company Act (the “DLLCA”). These changes include...more
12/20/2013
/ Board of Directors ,
Corporate Governance ,
Defective Corporate Acts ,
Delaware Limited Liability Company Act ,
Jurisdiction ,
Limited Liability Company (LLC) ,
Mergers ,
Public Benefit Corporation ,
Shareholder Votes ,
Shareholders ,
Shelf Corporations
Cybersecurity has become one of the hottest topics in the boardroom as companies wrestle with ever increasing threats to their information systems and intellectual property. A recent study by the Ponemon Institute found that...more
On June 25, 2013, the Delaware Court of Chancery upheld the facial validity of forum selection bylaws unilaterally adopted by the boards of directors of Chevron Corporation and FedEx Corporation.1The decision is welcome news...more