ERISA Plan Fiduciaries’ Proxy Voting: Regulatory Updates
What are ISS and Glass Lewis and Why Should My Bank Care?
In November, the Department of Labor (DOL) issued a final rule (Final Rule) that will remove certain restrictions on environmental, social, and governance (ESG) considerations in plan investments. These restrictions were...more
On October 14, 2021, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration (the “DOL”) published in the Federal Register a new proposed regulation (the “Proposed Rules”) on fiduciary responsibility in...more
The U.S. Department of Labor (the “DOL”) on October 14, 2021, released a new Proposed Regulation (the “Proposed Regulation”) generally relating to the prudence and loyalty duties under the fiduciary rules of the Employee...more
On March 10, 2021, the U.S. Department of Labor (the “DOL”) issued a statement that it intends to revisit its final rules issued late last year on “Financial Factors in Selecting Plan Investments” (summarized here) and...more
As 2020 drew to a close, the Department of Labor (“DOL”) finalized a number of regulations relating to the fiduciary duties that apply to ERISA plan investments, including: (1) a final rule generally restricting fiduciaries...more
President Joe Biden has been in office for 34 days and his nominee for Secretary of Labor, Marty Walsh, has not yet been confirmed. So far, Mr. Walsh has not publicly stated much regarding his views or intended priorities...more
On October 30, 2020, the U.S. Department of Labor (the “DOL”) issued a final rule on “ESG” investing which requires ERISA plan fiduciaries to base investment decisions on financial factors alone, prohibits fiduciaries from...more
The U.S. Department of Labor (the “DOL”) recently issued a final rule (the “Final Rule”) under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (“ERISA”) to clarify plan fiduciaries’ duties with respect to proxy voting and...more
On December 16, the Department of Labor (the “Department”) published its final regulation addressing the fiduciary duties that apply to proxy voting and the exercise of other shareholder rights in connection with investments...more
On September 4, 2020, the Department of Labor (“DOL”) published a proposed rule (the “Proposed Rule”) that would confirm its position that ERISA’s fiduciary duties of prudence and loyalty apply to an ERISA plan fiduciary’s...more
Keeping up the steady stream of new and proposed guidance coming from the US Department of Labor (DOL), the Employee Benefits Security Administration issued a proposed regulation on September 4, 2020 that would require...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: On the heels of the Department of Labor’s June proposed regulation throwing cold water on plan fiduciaries’ selecting investments in the environment, social and governance (ESG) space, the agency has now...more
Yesterday, the Securities and Exchange Commission adopted amendments to the proxy rules. ...more
REGULATORY UPDATES - Allison Herren Lee Sworn in as Commissioner - On July 8, 2019, Allison Herren Lee was sworn into office as a Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC") Commissioner. Lee was nominated to the SEC by...more
Corporate Governance and Securities Law Developments - Directors Can Be Held Liable for Failure to Oversee “Mission Critical” Regulatory Compliance - On October 1, the Delaware Court of Chancery refused to dismiss a...more
The Background: The Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") published guidance affecting proxy advisory firms and the investment advisers that rely on them as a follow-up to its November 2018 proxy process roundtable. ...more
On August 21, 2019, the Securities and Exchange Commission issued two interpretive releases involving proxy voting and proxy voting advice. In the first release, the SEC provided guidance regarding the responsibilities of...more
On August 21, 2019, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) voted 3 to 2 to adopt new interpretive guidance (the “Voting Interpretation”) applicable to investment advisers regarding their proxy voting responsibilities as...more
On August 21, 2019, the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) issued guidance relating to the proxy voting responsibilities of investment advisers (the “Proxy Voting Guidance”). This guidance follows the SEC’s...more
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) held an open meeting on August 21, 2019, (the Open Meeting) and approved two items: (1) guidance regarding the proxy voting responsibilities of investment advisers under the...more
Last week, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) approved interpretative guidance relating to (i) the application of proxy rules to proxy advisory firms and (ii) the fiduciary role of investment advisers within...more
At an open meeting held on August 21, 2019 (the “Meeting”), the Commissioners of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) issued guidance (the “Guidance”), by a 3-2 vote, to assist investment advisers when conducting...more
Possibly signaling the future direction of regulation of proxy advisers, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Aug. 21 issued two sets of interpretive guidance, one regarding proxy advisory firms under the...more
On August 21, the Securities and Exchange Commission issued guidance to clarify investment advisers’ fiduciary obligations when voting client proxies. On the same day, the SEC also issued an interpretation of Rule 14a-1(l)...more
At an open meeting on August 21, 2019, the SEC voted (three to two) to publish guidance aimed at addressing some of the long-simmering controversy surrounding the reliance by investment advisers on proxy advisory firms. Do...more