Public Companies

Subscribe to Public Companies

On November 3, 2021, the staff of the Division of Corporation Finance (the “Staff”) of the US Securities and Exchange Commission issued Staff Legal Bulletin No. 14L (“SLB 14L”). SLB 14L reverses course on Staff positions taken since 2017 with respect to the ordinary business grounds for exclusion of shareholder proposals from company proxy statements…

Webinar | Hosted by the Practising Law Institute (PLI)
October 13, 2021, 1:00pm – 2:00pm EDT

Recently proposed legislation in the US along with rising tensions between the US and China present significant challenges for US-listed companies with substantial operations in China.

During this PLI-hosted event, Mayer Brown LLP partners, Jason T. Elder and Christina…

Once again, it is time to prepare for the proxy and annual report season. There are many issues to take into consideration when crafting required regulatory disclosures in a manner that conveys effective messaging to the company’s investors. Advance planning, careful drafting and multi-faceted review greatly contribute to a successful proxy and annual report season,…

The Securities and Exchange Commission’s Division of Corporation Finance (Division) published a sample letter with comments that the Staff intends to issue to public companies regarding their climate change disclosures—or lack thereof—in SEC filings. As explained in a prior Mayer Brown post, Commissioner Lee, when she was Acting Chair of the SEC earlier this…

The Securities and Exchange Commission approved the proposed rule change by Nasdaq which will require listed companies to disclose information about the diversity of a company’s board of directors.  For a limited time, Nasdaq will offer certain listed companies access to a board recruitment service.  The rule will require, to the extent permissible under applicable…

Today, Securities and Exchange Commission Chair Gary Gensler spoke at the “Climate and Global Financial Markets” webinar, hosted by the Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI), the UN-supported network of investors—focusing his remarks on: “So, what does the SEC have to do with climate?”  Giving a timely analogy related to the Olympics, the Chair explained that…

On June 11, 2021, the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced that it would focus on cybersecurity disclosures made by public companies as part of its regulatory agenda. Given the SEC’s continued interest in cybersecurity issues, high-profile ransomware attacks and executive orders issued by President Biden, it is no surprise that the SEC is…

At a recent conference, Securities and Exchange Commission Chair Gary Gensler gave wide-ranging remarks addressing market structure issues, LIBOR and other rates, and the Commission’s regulatory agenda.

Addressing regulatory initiatives relating to public company disclosures, Chair Gensler noted he has asked the Staff to put together recommendations on mandatory company disclosures on climate risk and…

During the National Investor Relations Institute’s (NIRI) 2021 Virtual Conference, SEC Commissioner Elad Roisman spoke about the hot topic of ESG-related disclosure requirements.

The Commissioner noted that public companies are overwhelmed with the amount and the specificity of ESG data investors ask them to provide.  Commissioner Roisman appreciated the call for standardized disclosures related to…