ERISA Plan Fiduciaries’ Proxy Voting: Regulatory Updates
What are ISS and Glass Lewis and Why Should My Bank Care?
On February 11, 2025, Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) announced a change to its voting policy with respect to board diversity. ISS will no longer consider the gender and racial and/or ethnic diversity of U.S. company...more
In December last year, the Federal District Court for the Western District of Texas issued an Order granting summary judgment to the SEC and Chair Gary Gensler and denying summary judgment to the National Association of...more
As companies begin preparing for the 2023 proxy season, we note that Institutional Shareholder Services Inc. (ISS) and Glass Lewis, the leading providers of corporate governance solutions and proxy advisory services, issued...more
For many insiders at a newly formed public company, a large portion of their net worth is potentially tied up in holdings of their company’s publicly-traded shares. These insiders often face challenges obtaining liquidity...more
Glass, Lewis & Co (Glass Lewis) and Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) have both released updates to their Canadian proxy voting guidelines for the 2023 proxy season. The Glass Lewis updates apply to shareholder...more
Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) and Glass Lewis, the leading proxy advisors in the United States, have announced updates and clarifications for their voting guidelines for the 2023 proxy season. Their voting...more
Proxy advisory services have been beset by controversy. In response, in July 2020, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) issued final rules (the 2020 Final Rules) tightening regulations that govern proxy advisory...more
The 2022 Amendments have removed the requirements that call for proxy advisory firms claiming an exemption from proxy filing rules for solicitations to provide their proxy voting advice to subject companies and provide their...more
As discussed in our July 24, 2020 client alert, the SEC amended the proxy rules to establish a framework for proxy advisors such as ISS and Glass Lewis to remain exempt from proxy rule information and filing requirements....more
Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) and Glass Lewis, the leading proxy advisors in the United States, have announced updates and clarifications for their voting guidelines for the 2022 proxy season. Their voting...more
In 2019, the SEC proposed changes to its proxy advisor rules (the “2019 Proposed Rules”). Later the SEC adopted final rules regarding proxy voting advice (the “2020 Final Rules”) provided by proxy advisory firms, or proxy...more
Our preliminary list of important planning considerations for the 2022 proxy season is set forth below. - Directors’ and Officers’ Questionnaires; Committee Charters - We have identified only a few possible changes...more
The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is actively reconsidering its position on the applicability of its proxy rules to proxy voting advice. Background - In July 2020, the SEC adopted amendments to its proxy...more
The SEC’s long-awaited final rules governing voting advice provided by proxy advisory firms such as Institutional Shareholders Service (ISS) and Glass Lewis (the “final rules”) became effective on November 2, 2020. The final...more
Proxy advisory firms ISS and Glass Lewis have issued their annual updated proxy voting guidelines for the upcoming 2021 proxy season. Glass Lewis’s new guidelines apply to shareholder meetings on or after January 1, 2021,...more
In recent years, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has sought to address controversy regarding the proxy voting system and the influence of proxy advisory firms such as Glass, Lewis & Co. and Institutional...more
On July 22, 2020, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) adopted amendments to its proxy rules addressing proxy voting advice provided by proxy advisory firms, such as ISS and Glass Lewis. The amendments were originally...more
The nation’s largest shareholder advisory firm, Institutional Shareholder Services Inc. (“ISS”), recently filed suit against the SEC over new guidelines meant to give investors more transparency into how proxy advisory firms...more
You might recall that, at the end of October, proxy advisory firm ISS filed suit against the SEC and its Chair, Jay Clayton (or Walter Clayton III, as he is called in the complaint) in connection with the interpretation and...more
On November 5, 2019, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) proposed amendments to its rules governing proxy solicitations. If adopted in their current form, these proposals could significantly affect interactions...more
Glass Lewis recently posted its comprehensive 2020 voting guidelines, which are summarized on the first page of the 2020 voting guidelines as well as on the Glass Lewis blog. Among other things, the 2020 voting guidelines...more
Hosts Jonathan Hightower and Rob Klingler are joined for today's episode by Kevin Strachan, an attorney in Bryan Cave's Financial Services Corporate and Regulatory practice, to discuss proxy advisors ISS and Glass Lewis as...more
As an early step in preparing for the upcoming proxy season, issuers should familiarize themselves with the Canadian proxy voting guidelines recently published by Institutional Shareholder Services Inc. (ISS) and Glass Lewis...more
As part of BakerHostetler’s commitment to serve as a strategic business partner, we are pleased to publish this first edition of our Securities & Governance Bulletin. This resource is designed to keep executives, corporate...more
Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) and Glass Lewis (GL), the two most influential proxy advisory firms, recently released updates to their voting policies for 2017. Both ISS and GL issued policy updates on director...more