On September 10, 2024, the SEC settled charges against Keurig for "incomplete and inaccurate" ESG disclosures about the recyclability of Keurig's K-Cup pods, signaling a continued focus on environmental-related disclosures...more
The Situation: Boards of directors face increasingly intense workloads, pressure to respond to developments in real time, and exposure to a higher level of legal risk than ever before....more
The Situation: When the Delaware Supreme Court decided Kahn v. M&F Worldwide Corp. (MFW) in 2014 (88 A.3d 635 (Del. 2014)), it provided a pathway for business judgment review for "freeze-out" merger transactions involving...more
In Short -
The Background: On October 10, 2023, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") adopted amendments to the rules that govern beneficial ownership reporting for investors, marking the first update to...more
10/18/2023
/ Beneficial Owner ,
Business Ownership ,
Financial Markets ,
Internal Reporting ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investors ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Exchange Act ,
Securities Regulation ,
Shareholders
The EU’s Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (“CSRD”) requires the most detailed and onerous ESG reporting and disclosures anywhere in the world. All told, it is estimated that more than 50,000 companies, including...more
9/21/2023
/ Air Pollution ,
Biodiversity ,
Climate Change ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Due Diligence ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
Parent Corporation ,
Proposed Regulation ,
Proposed Rules ,
Sustainability ,
Water
On 8 August 2023, the Securities and Futures Commission of Hong Kong ("SFC") published consultation conclusions on proposed amendments to enforcement-related provisions of the Securities and Futures Ordinance ("SFO")....more
The Hong Kong Listing Rule amendments relating to People's Republic of China ("PRC") issuers came into effect on August 1, 2023....more
In Short -
The Situation: In the past few years, the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited (the "Stock Exchange") has taken initiatives to introduce a paperless listing regime and make changes to documentary requirements. ...more
On May 3, 2023, the Securities and Exchange Commission adopted final rules regarding public company issuers' share repurchases and Rule 10b5-1 trading plans. Although the final rules are not as burdensome as the proposed...more
In Short -
The Background: The recent failure of Silicon Valley Bank, the second-largest bank failure in U.S. history, temporarily paralyzed start-ups, public companies, venture firms, private equity firms, and portfolio...more
In Short -
The Situation: On December 14, 2022, the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") adopted final rules that significantly alter the ways in which directors and officers adopt and utilize Rule 10b5-1 plans and...more
The European Parliament has adopted the near-final version of the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive under which European Union ("EU") companies (including non-EU companies with substantial business activity in the...more
The Securities and Exchange Commission has issued final rules under which the national securities exchanges and associations will require listed issuers to adopt and operate accounting restatement-based clawback policies that...more
As required by the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act in 2010, on October 26, 2022, the Securities and Exchange Commission adopted final rules directing the national securities exchanges and national...more
As required by the 2010 Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (the "Dodd-Frank Act"), the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") has adopted final rules requiring most public companies to present...more
In Short -
The Situation: Until now, Delaware corporations could eliminate or limit monetary liability for breaches of the duty of care only by directors—but not officers. ...more
IN SHORT -
The Situation: The Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") adopted amendments that will mandate the electronic submission of certain documents, including Form 144, the form filed by insiders in connection...more
The use of SPACs to take companies public increased dramatically in recent years, but many of these new companies performed poorly after entering the public capital markets. This poor performance, often accompanied by...more
For many companies, summer is the time when they prepare and publish Sustainability Reports, which report on efforts with respect to environmental, social, and governance initiatives. Other companies may have already...more
7/1/2022
/ Business Strategies ,
Capital Investments ,
Climate Change ,
Corporate Governance ,
Corporate Social Responsibility ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Greenwashing ,
Publicly-Traded Companies ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Regulation ,
Sustainability
As discussed in Jones Day's March 2022 Alert, the SEC has proposed climate-related disclosure rules. If adopted as proposed, the Proposed Rules would depart from the SEC's historical regulation of SEC-reporting FPIs, which...more
7/1/2022
/ Climate Change ,
Corporate Governance ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Foreign Private Issuers ,
Proposed Rules ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Regulation ,
Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD)
We believe our proposed changes support all market participants' common objectives of investor protection and fair and efficient capital markets.
...more
6/20/2022
/ Capital Markets ,
Climate Change ,
Corporate Governance ,
Corporate Social Responsibility ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Investment ,
Investor Protection ,
Publicly-Traded Companies ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Reform ,
SEC Comment Letter Process ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Regulation
In 2020 and the first quarter of 2021, the use of special purpose acquisition companies ("SPACs") as a means of taking companies public grew exponentially. SPAC IPOs raised a total of more than $160 billion in that five...more
On March 21, 2022, the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") voted 3–1 to propose amendments to Regulations S-K and S-X that would require registrants to provide certain climate-related information in their registration...more
3/24/2022
/ Annual Reports ,
Climate Change ,
Corporate Governance ,
Corporate Social Responsibility ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Financial Statements ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Proposed Regulation ,
Public Comment ,
Publicly-Traded Companies ,
Regulation S-K ,
Regulation S-X ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Regulation
As part of the SEC's broader rulemaking initiative, on March 9, 2022, the SEC proposed amendments to enhance and standardize disclosures regarding cybersecurity risk management, strategy, governance, and incident reporting by...more
3/14/2022
/ Corporate Governance ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Breach ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Foreign Private Issuers ,
Form 10-K ,
Form 10-Q ,
Form 8-K ,
Proposed Amendments ,
Publicly-Traded Companies ,
Regulation S-K ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Regulation
The Delaware Court of Chancery's application of the "entire fairness" standard in In re MultiPlan Stockholders Litigation is an important development for SPACs incorporated in Delaware, and it could result in more...more