In certain cases, disputes between companies and activist shareholders may be amicably resolved by entering into a settlement agreement. These agreements may provide a means to address the concerns and objectives of both parties while potentially avoiding costly and burdensome proxy battles or litigation.
Overview of Settlement Agreements
Settlement agreements are used, on the one
The 2023 proxy season was marked by a number of notable developments in the activism landscape. After a downturn in shareholder activism throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, Canada experienced a resurgence in 2023 with a record number of activist campaigns. Activists used novel tactics enabled by recent legislative changes and garnered support from institutional investors to
In Eastern Platinum Limited v. Ren, 2024 BCCA 109, the BC Court of Appeal confirmed that where one activist shareholder’s proxy fight and subsequent derivative action fails, another shareholder represented by the same legal counsel can successfully obtain leave to bring a very similar derivative action.
Background
The Company, Eastern Platinum Limited (EPL), owns
With the 2024 proxy season now in full swing, companies face a number of important questions. Among them is the timely question of meeting format: whether to hold the company’s annual general meeting (AGM) in person, virtually, or through some combination of both.
The option to conduct AGMs exclusively by virtual means has been appealing
As artificial intelligence (AI) regulation takes shape globally, public companies face the challenge of navigating this evolving landscape. In Canada, securities regulators are actively deliberating on how best to regulate AI, while in the US, companies are already making AI-related disclosure. In October 2023, the Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) published a report detailing the use
This blog post is the first of a new series looking at recent developments in Canadian corporate litigation, with a slight bias towards Ontario. The goal is to provide regular updates on court decisions that are of interest to the authors and that the authors hope may be of interest to readers. The watchwords of
Over the last decade, there has been a notable increase in the number of women on boards and in executive officer positions across Canadian issuers. This progress is reflected in the Canadian Securities Administrators’ (CSA) annual review of the corporate governance disclosures of publicly listed companies. Most notably, the number of women occupying board seats
Recently, the B.C. Securities Commission (the Commission) clarified the interpretation of “acting jointly or in concert” in the context of a proxy fight, setting a high bar for a finding of a joint actor relationship.
In NorthWest Copper Corp., 2023 BCSECCOM 602, the Commission declined to find that certain shareholders of NorthWest Copper Corp.
On February 1, 2023, our Special Situations team successfully obtained an order from the Ontario Superior Court of Justice (Commercial List) requiring that First Capital Real Estate Investment Trust (First Capital) accelerate the holding of a requisitioned special
On February 1, 2023, our Special Situations team successfully obtained an order from the Ontario Superior Court of Justice (Commercial List) requiring that First Capital Real Estate Investment Trust (First Capital) accelerate the holding of a requisitioned special
