February 2, 2010
There has been much press comment regarding the pay package of Marc Bolland, the new Marks & Spencer (M&S) CEO. M&S has been no stranger to press and investor attention in recent times. In particular, the decision to combine the roles of Chairman and CEO in 2008 attracted criticism for the failure to
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January 22, 2010
The report of the High Court Inspector into the affairs of DCC plc, S&L Investments Limited and Lotus Green Limited was published by order of the Court this week.
The main events (previously covered in Manifest’s Agenda newsletter) preceding the initiation of this High Court Inquiry were as follows:
August 1995: DCC and S&L entered
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January 22, 2010
Two US pension funds, the City of Westland Police & Fire Retirement System and the Massachusetts Bricklayers and Masons pension fund have filed a class action lawsuit against Alcon, Novartis and Nestlé, alleging that Novartis’ recent offer for Alcon discriminates against minority shareholders. The complaint against the three Swiss-based companies and several Alcon
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January 22, 2010
Changes in the Executive Suite Lead to Expensive Consulting Deals
Widely seen by analysts as one of the weaker performers in the U.S. meat sector, Tyson Foods, Inc. has its third CEO in as many years. In early 2009, Richard Bond quit after less than three years on the job, and was replaced by
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January 20, 2010
Hermes, the fund manager owned by British Telecom Pension Scheme, has filed a shareholder countermotion in which it calls for shareholders not to elect Klaus Wucherer as the Chairman of the Supervisory Board but to appoint Willi Berchtold instead.
Mr. Wucherer has served on the Supervisory Board since 1999 and hence contributed to its
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January 15, 2010
The annual report of former AIM-traded company Meldex International plc for the December 2008 year end has been published and includes revealing statements from the new CEO about the serious lapses in corporate governance during the tenure of his predecessor.
In June 2009, Meldex, the Cambridge-based pharmaceutical company whose shares were suspended in December
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January 8, 2010
United Drug has followed the lead of DCC in proposing a vote on its remuneration report as a separate voting item at its upcoming AGM on 9 February. The notice of meeting acknowledges that there is no legal obligation on the company to put such a resolution to shareholders, so this
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January 6, 2010
The Financial Services Authority (FSA) has confirmed that it has commenced criminal proceedings against four former directors of iSoft Group Plc. Patrick Cryne, Stephen Graham, Timothy Whiston and John Whelan have been summonsed to appear at City of Westminster Magistrates Court on 29 January 2010 to face charges of conspiracy to make misleading statements
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November 20, 2009
Could shareholders accelerate the pace of regulatory reform at US companies by taking matters into their own hands? Probably not says the Council of Institutional Investors and Shareowners.org.
According to a new report commissioned by the leading US investor body, The Council of Institutional Investors (CII) the idea that owners could enable proxy access at
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November 13, 2009
We noted last month that Australia’s Productivity Commission had released a detailed discussion document which included a package of suggested changes to the Corporations Act and ASX listing rules. Over 50 submissions were made to the Commission following the publication of the discussion document and before last Friday’s deadline. The Commission
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