General Counsel/Corporate Secretary

ARTICLE2011 General Counsel Forum Highlights November 21, 2011General counsel representing 25 states and Canada recently joined governance professionals and advisers at the New York Stock Exchange for Corporate Board Member’s annual General Counsel Forum. The program included two keynote addresses from Senator Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) and the NYSE’s own general counsel, John Halvey. In addition, the general counsel attendees took part in a lively peer collaboration, a popular recurring highlight of the conference each year.

THOUGHT LEADERSHIPReactions to the Regulatory Environment October 05, 2011It's no secret that the regulatory environment is tougher than it used to be. General counsel who responded to Corporate Board Member and FTI Consulting's annual survey cited regulatory compliance as the area they perceive will contribute the most to the legal department’s workload over the next 12 months, over such duties as transactions, HR/employment issues, and proxy/director election issues.

RESULTSA Renewed Focus on Liability September 29, 2011Given the close attention being paid to corporate accountability as a result of the economic meltdown and subsequent bailout, some governance observers predict we may see a greater effort to hold directors personally liable for serious violations or neglect of duties.

ARTICLEProxy Access Still an Issue for 2012 September 13, 2011The Court’s decision did not address the SEC’s amendment to Rule 14a-8(i)(8). These amendments to the existing shareholder proposal rule permit the type of “private ordering” for proxy access through the shareholder proposal process that many commenters had supported in the course of the proxy access rulemaking.