Category: Corporate Governance
Tools for Audit Committee Members
by Cydney Posner The Audit Committee Collaboration (ACC) has announced the release of new tools, the External Auditor Assessment Tool: A Reference for Audit Committees Worldwide and an updated U.S. version of the External Auditor Assessment Tool, both designed to assist audit committees in evaluating the external auditor, to assess the quality […]
CII petitions SEC for staff guidance on the proxy rules and an amendment to Item 5.07 of Form 8-K regarding voting results
by Cydney Posner Earlier this month, the Council of Institutional Investors filed a petition with the SEC requesting interpretive guidance regarding the proxy rules and rulemaking in connection with Form 8-K. More specifically, CII requested the following: Staff guidance regarding proxy statement disclosure of voting requirements for items on the ballot […]
This year’s conflict minerals filings show some improvement, according to early review
by Cydney Posner An early review of conflict minerals filings for the 2014 reporting period shows improvement in “detail, clarity and quality,” according to this article in BNA. As reported by Elm Sustainability Partners, a conflict minerals consulting firm, there were 1,272 filers for the 2014 reporting period, compared to 1,328 for […]
SEC to consider requiring disclosure of audit firm tenure and name of engagement partner
by Cydney Posner The SEC is expected to issue its concept release on improving audit committee reports “soon” (whatever that means) according to Compliance Week, and among the topics the SEC will examine is whether those “reports should include the audit firm’s tenure and the name of engagement partners.” If this […]
House aims to stop SEC from requiring political spending disclosure — companies increasingly “volunteer” spending information
by Cydney Posner It may seem early to you to be thinking about Christmas, but not to Congress. In fact, it’s just that time of year again when Congress uses annual appropriations bills as a Christmas tree for all of its favorite ornaments. In this year’s financial services spending bill, […]
Former SEC Chairs and Commissioners to Chair Mary Jo White: failure to mandate political spending disclosure is “inexplicable”
by Cydney Posner Today, two former SEC Chairs and one former Commissioner delivered a letter to SEC Chair Mary Jo White politely berating (well, maybe not so politely) her failure to take action on the 2011 rulemaking petition to require disclosure of the use of corporate resources for political activities.
PCAOB publishes new “Audit Committee Dialogue”
by Cydney Posner The PCAOB has announced the publication of a new paper designed to address audit committees. The paper, Audit Committee Dialogue, provides insights from inspections of public company auditors that should assist audit committee members in overseeing their auditors. Other similar papers are anticipated. This paper highlights two areas: key […]
They spurred the stock buyback phenomenon. Will hedge fund activists now eviscerate R&D?
by Cydney Posner It is widely recognized that one of the primary causes of the current stock buyback phenomenon has been pressure from hedge fund activists. But, as suggested in this NYT DealBook column, the activist playbook is certainly not limited to buybacks and dividends: “[a]s activist hedge funds take […]
With two dissents, SEC proposes pay-for-performance disclosure rules
by Cydney Posner This morning, by a three to two margin, the SEC voted to propose rules requiring companies to disclose executive pay for performance. The proposal comes five years after passage of Dodd-Frank, which imposed the obligation on the SEC. Currently, many companies voluntarily provide information that could fit […]
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