Subscribe to the Finance Headline RSS feed | Subscribe to the Finance Headline feed via EmailANALYSIS: SEC Opens Door for Climate Change-Related Shareholder Proposals and Disclosure Requirements, with Potential New Liabilities for Public Companies
March 1, 2010 in Securities Regulation & Law Report · Leave a Comment
The 2009 proxy season saw a record number of shareholder resolutions related to climate change directed at a range of industries, including automotive, building, finance, oil, and power generation. Investors are increasingly seeking information from publicly held companies regarding their relative risk position to climate change. Shareholder resolutions seek information about greenhouse gas emissions, energy usage, and go as far as seeking emissions reduction targets. Shareholders are even requesting financial institutions and banks to adopt resolutions limiting or eliminating their lending and investment relationships with companies that present environmental risk. Historically, companies generally were entitled to exclude environmental requests from proxy materials. However, times and the rules have changed…
