Laurel Hill Advisory Group

Laurel Hill Advisory Group (Canada) is pleased to publish our 10th annual Trends in Corporate Governance Report. For the past decade, our annual report has consistently outlined the key trends, risks, and challenges facing Canada’s public companies. Each year, our goal is to provide a resource for our clients to help prepare for the upcoming proxy season and to identify and manage risks throughout the year. Our comprehensive report covers non-contested director elections, auditor votes, executive compensation, director compensation, shareholder proposals, virtual meetings, and ESG developments, among other areas of interest as you prepare for the upcoming proxy season and beyond. Please contact David Salmon or Bill Zawada to discuss how we can help you prepare for a successful 2025 AGM. #esg #esginvesting #executivepay #executivecompensation #corpgov #governance #corporategovernance

the Laurel Hill Advisory Group Team is kickin' it this week in Nashville at the Association of Corporate Counsel annual conference. Come on by the booth and sit a spell!! John J. DePinto Jr. David Salmon Bill Zawada Meagan Lehman Jennifer Beissner James Catacosinos and Jamie Catacosinos are all here to help!

Laurel Hill Advisory Group (Canada) is proud to be Canada’s #1 Proxy Solicitor Overall in the H1 2024 Bloomberg Global Activism League Tables. To learn about how the Laurel Hill team can help you navigate shareholder activism with unmatched advice, insights, and execution, contact David Salmon or Bill Zawada. #shareholders #shareholderactivism #mergersandacquisitions #proxycontests #corpgov #governance #corporategovernance

Laurel Hill Advisory Group is proud to again be sponsoring The SPAC Conference from DealFlow Events!! Come visit with Desiree Carlo, John J. DePinto Jr., Michaelie Wingo, Timothy Roy and Anthony Vitellozzi to discuss launching your next project- or how we can help complete your current one! #TheSPACConference

Laurel Hill Advisory Group was pleased to sponsor The Walrus Gala in Toronto last night, represented by David Salmon, Bonita Sears, and Bill Zawada. This incredible event raised more than $500,000 to secure the future of fact-based, independent journalism and storytelling at The Walrus ! A special thank you to our dear guests for joining us for a fun and inspirational evening!  

We are very please to announce that John J. DePinto Jr. has joined the Team at Laurel Hill Advisory Group as a Senior Vice President. John's experience, knowledge, and insight will be a boon to our clients and the Team. We look forward to building a future together!! #shareholderactivism #corporategovernance #ESG #M&A We are excited to have you join our team. Any tips to help them get started? #newhire #welcome

We are pleased to announce that Melissa Carlson has joined Laurel Hill Advisory Group as SVP of Proxy Solicitation! Melissa brings with her a wealth of experience and knowledge in managing shareholder outreach, proxy campaigns and Institutional investor engagement strategies. She will be working with our key clients and we have already received very positive feedback from her involvement with their Annual Meetings! #shareholderengagement #proxysolicitation

Is ESG Losing Some Momentum? Today’s WSJ (p. A1) discusses the increasing reduction of public companies’ popularity of “ESG” - environmental, social, and governance. While ESG has not disappeared, there is a noticeable decline in the disclosure and discussion by companies and their executives. Part of the reason is due to Republican pushback on ESG. Last May, Florida’s Gov. DeSantis signed legislation intended to protect consumers and Floridians’ retirement funds against potentially problematic ESG policies. Gov. DeSantis stated that “By applying arbitrary ESG financial metrics that serve no one except the companies that created them, elites are circumventing the ballot box to implement a radical ideological agenda. Through this legislation, we will protect the investments of Floridians and the ability of Floridians to participate in the economy.” Companies have taken Gov. DeSantis’ thinking, and other Republicans, as well as publicly disclosed opinions that discredit ESG, into account. ESG started about 20 years ago as a term by the United Nations. The dialogue and revelation of ESG status and goals by public companies led to an increase in evaluation and some disapproval by investors. While Governance is generally less subject to hostility by investors, Environmental continues as a hot topic, and Social issues can be more problematic; both Environmental and Social lead to shareholder proposals. CEOs have been encouraged by advisers not to use the term “ESG” in public discussions. Some companies have changed their disclosure, quietly moving “Environmental” to “Sustainability”, e.g., in 2022, Coca-Cola published a “Business and ESG” report – in 2023 the report was titled “Business and Sustainability”. We have observed a slight lowering of ESG recently and anticipate more of reduction in 2024 public company filings.

Laurel Hill Advisory Group (Canada) is pleased to share our 2023 Trends in Shareholder Activism Report covering the latest information and data on board and transactional activism, unsolicited offers, and short–selling activism. The rise in shareholder activism in Canada this year has been spectacular. Shareholder appetite to seek board change at underperforming companies, to rally fellow shareholders to oppose “undervalued” or “ill–conceived” M&A transactions, or to make other public demands has simply been voracious. Please contact David Salmon or Bill Zawada with any questions on the report or to speak on your shareholder activism needs. #shareholders #shareholderactivism #mergersandacquisitions #proxycontests #corpgov #governance #corporategovernance

Dillie, the Due Dilligence Wolf and mascot of Laurel Hill Advisory Group is excited to be attending the Institute of Finance and Management (IOFM) APP2P Fall Conference!! check back for updates!! #duediligence #unclaimedproperty #generalledger #accountspayable