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Smithfield Foods appoints general counsel

Mar 28, 2023

Smithfield, Virginia-based Smithfield Foods has promoted Tennille Checkovich to become general counsel. She reports to Mike Flemming, Smithfield’s chief legal officer (CLO). Checkovich joined Smithfield in 2020 and most recently was the company’s deputy general counsel for litigation. In her new role, she is responsible for managing all litigation involving the company, overseeing risk management regarding a wide range of regulatory and compliance issues, and as...

Compliance

The week in GRC: Biden vetoes effort to block DoL’s ESG rules and experts question bank boards’ risk oversight

Mar 24, 2023

Ben Maiden

The week in GRC: Biden vetoes effort to block DoL’s ESG rules and experts question bank boards’ risk oversight

– CNBC reported that the United Nations published a landmark report urging governments to begin an urgent course correction to tackle the climate crisis, warning that existing plans were insufficient to prevent the worst of what is to come. The UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) said the u...

Shareholders

Investors and companies press US authorities to defend sustainable finance

Mar 24, 2023

Ben Maiden

Investors and companies press US authorities to defend sustainable finance

Hundreds of investors, companies and other organizations have signed a statement calling for state and federal policymakers to avoid the types of investment constraints being threatened by political pushback against ESG-related finance. The ‘Freedom to invest’ statement, released yesterday, was organized by Ceres and the We Mean Business Coalition and to date has more than ...

Appointments

Charter Communications general counsel to retire

Mar 23, 2023

Ben Maiden

Charter Communications general counsel to retire

Rick Dykhouse, executive vice president, general counsel and corporate secretary with Charter Communications, plans to retire after 17 years with the company. Dykhouse will continue as Charter’s general counsel during the search for his successor. After that appointment is made, he will stay on as executive counsel to support the transition, reporting to president and CEO Chris Winfrey. Dykhouse joined Charter in May 2006 as vice president and senior counse...

Appointments

Everest Re veteran general counsel to depart

Mar 21, 2023

Ben Maiden

Everest Re veteran general counsel to depart

NYSE-listed Everest Re Group has appointed Brent Hoffman as interim general counsel, succeeding Sanjoy Mukherjee, who the company says is leaving to pursue other opportunities, effective April 21. After leaving the company, Mukherjee will be available as an adviser to Everest to assist in the transition into July 2023. Everest says it will conduct a search for Mukherjee’s permanent replacement. Mukherjee could not be reached immediately for comment. ...

Boardroom

The Governance Papers: The cost of sexual harassment, the Gen X board effect – and more

Mar 20, 2023

Jeff Cossette

The Governance Papers: The cost of sexual harassment, the Gen X board effect – and more

1) The price of sexual harassment How much does workplace sexual harassment damage company value? Evidence from a new study suggests it’s more than you might think – a lot more. Until now, researchers have approached the question by measuring the short-term stock market reactions around public revelations of sexual harassment scandals. This line of research documents an immediate shareholder value loss of 0.6 percent to 1.5 percent of mark...

Shareholders

Eli Lilly faces shareholder proposals on lobbying

Mar 17, 2023

Ben Maiden

Eli Lilly faces shareholder proposals on lobbying

Eli Lilly and Company shareholders appear set to vote on separate shareholder proposals addressing its lobbying activities and political spending. The company has unsuccessfully sought regulatory go-ahead to omit them from its proxy statement. One proposal, filed by the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), requests that E...

Compliance

The week in GRC: Fink says BlackRock not the ‘environmental police’ and SEC reopens cyber-security rules comment period

Mar 17, 2023

Ben Maiden

The week in GRC: Fink says BlackRock not the ‘environmental police’ and SEC reopens cyber-security rules comment period

– Reuters (paywall) reported that US authorities took emergency measures to protect confidence in the banking system after the failure of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) created fears of a wider financial crisis. Regulators said the bank’s customers would have access to all their depos...

ESG

Green-hushing: Will companies say less as ESG scrutiny increases?

Mar 16, 2023

Tim Human

Green-hushing: Will companies say less as ESG scrutiny increases?

A common question for companies as they seek to tell their sustainability story is how much they should disclose. For those at the beginning of tackling issues like climate risk or board diversity, it might seem risky to begin talking about those topics. Data that right now doesn’t look great could become a stick to beat the company with. Generally, the advice for companies has been that it’s better to ...

Boardroom

Governance reminders for a period of uncertainty

Mar 15, 2023

Jennifer Carlson, Lawrence Cunningham and Anna Pinedo

Governance reminders for a period of uncertainty

Companies will be affected in a variety of ways by the receivership of Signature Bank, Silicon Valley Bank and any financial institution faced with a similar crisis. Companies may face both liquidity and solvency challenges, and the resulting constraints may lead to difficult decisions, including prioritizing the uses of limited cash. Board oversight of resulting decision-making will be implicated in many cases. Senior executives are advised to maintain a regular di...

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