November 23, 2012

ISS and Glass Lewis 2013 Proxy Season Guidelines

Jon Feldman, Neill May and Michael Partridge

Proxy advisory firms Institutional Shareholder Services Inc. (“ISS”) and Glass Lewis & Co. (“Glass Lewis”) recently released their proxy voting policy updates for the 2013 proxy season. The new guidelines address, among other things, corporate governance standards, executive compensation and shareholder rights. This update summarizes the significant changes made to the proxy voting guidelines affecting Canadian issuers, effective for shareholder meetings on or after February 1, 2013.

"Goodmans has deep experience in capital markets and in the REIT space. Their service and responsiveness levels are also very high." — Chambers Canada
Goodmans LLP houses a full-service capital markets practice... Among its core strong suits, the group is arguably best known for its strength in SPACs, REITs and IPOs... — The Legal 500 Canada
"The team is very professional, solves problems efficiently and is very hard-working. It is a great pleasure and privilege to work with the team on cross-border transactions and multi-jurisdictional projects." — Legal 500 Canada
"It is one of our trusted and preferred legal firms when we go to select specific counsel. It is a leader in capital markets, and we trust the group's view and know that it works well." — Chambers Canada
A prominent player in REITs and SPAC-related offerings, also bearing an impressive record in cross-border and cannabis-related matters. — The Legal 500 Canada
Clients note, "They have an exceptional ability to understand the root of the issue and figure out realistic, step-by-step approaches to solve problems." — Chambers Canada
A distinguished practice valued for advising major REITs and financial institutions on innovative capital markets transactions. — Chambers Canada
On the Capital Markets group, one client says, "deep strength and expertise at all levels...nothing can replace stability and the fact that I have worked with Goodmans on both sides of the table since the early 2000’s." — Legal 500 Canada
One interviewee reported, "The Goodmans team as a whole is excellent," adding: "The lawyers are very responsive and get the job done. It is of great assurance to have them as our legal advisers." — Chambers Canada
Clients comment Goodmans Capital Markets team has "Deep experience, based upon decades of leadership in the sector." — IFLR1000
A client notes, "The lawyers that I have worked with at Goodmans are extremely professional, knowledgeable, creative and excellent service providers. The matters that we have worked on were extremely complicated and required high level of ability to combine understanding of our business objectives with legal analysis." — IFLR1000
Clients note the team's "institutional knowledge is very deep" and stated: "It's like they're part of the team they work with. They're extremely responsive." — Chambers Global

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ISS and Glass Lewis 2013 Proxy Season Guidelines

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Neill May

Michael Partridge

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