James McRitchie
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  • Elk Grove, California
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USPX to File Amicus Curiae Brief in Apache vs. Chevedden

Started Feb 23

Co-Filers Wanted on Petition to Eliminate Street Name Registration
3 Replies

Started this discussion. Last reply by James McRitchie Jan 29.

Proxy Plumbing
2 Replies

Started this discussion. Last reply by James McRitchie Dec. 5, 2009.

 

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Corporate Governance

James McRitchie has published CorpGov.Net, a popular corporate governance portal since 1995. According to the Council of Institutional Investors, McRitchie’s 2002 SEC petition "re-energized" the debate over proxy access to nominate directors. His articles have appeared in At Work, Business Ethics, The Corporate Board, Corporate Secretary, and International Corporate Governance. McRitchie is frequently quoted in the press and has addressed audiences in Asia and Europe, funded by business associations, the Asian Development Bank and the U.S. State Department.

Interests: Recently, I’ve been working on systems to further empower retail shareholders such as ProxyDemocracy.org, iSuffrage.org, and VoterMedia.org. I also have a long-standing interest in creating more democratic corporate governance structures, with clearer avenues for participation and lines of accountability at corporations, funds and regulators.

James McRitchie's Blog

James McRitchie

Rising Stars of Corporate Governance Nominations Due Soon

Nominations for Rising Stars due 3/31/2010. See http://millstein.som.yale.edu/RisingStar.shtml Reception recognizes young (<40 as of June 16, 2010) experts from any country or corpgov field: corporations, academic, investors, auditors, advisors, rating agencies, proxy services, professional associations, etc. Reception immediately precedes June 17-18, 2010 Yale Governance Forum in New Haven, CT. “Must attend” event for institutional… Continue

Posted on February 6, 2010 at 8:30pm —

James McRitchie

Rosenfeld's Letter to the SEC on Strategic Planning

William L. Rosenfeld, Director, Strategic Initiatives Investors Against Genocide wrote a letter to the SEC for consideration in developing their strategic plan. I think many who are working on proxy "plumbing" or "mechanics" issues will also find it useful. Read the November 13th letter.

I'll just touch on a few key highlights to perk your interest.

1. Require Prompt Consideration of Propos… Continue

Posted on December 14, 2009 at 2:33pm —

James McRitchie

Comments Supporting Proxy Access Due August 17th

Yes, the Commission voted on June 10 along party lines, three to two, to propose rule amendments aimed at giving shareholders the right to nominate directors to corporate boards. This is a symbolic equivalent to the Magna Carta, which barrons forced the English King to sign, limiting his powers by law and protecting their privileges. However, it will make it difficult for the SEC to proceed if submitted comments are mostly opposed. The Business Roundtable is orchestrating a flood of opposing com… Continue

Posted on August 12, 2009 at 6:30pm —

James McRitchie

Being a Director Should be Considered a Real Job

Jonathan Drance and Edward Waitzer compare and contrast private-equity and public boards and conclude we should Make directors work. (National Post, 7/16/09) I've seen the comparisons before; it's the conclusion that is novel.

"In private equity, CEOs are clearly subordinate to their board. This contrasts with many public companies where,… Continue

Posted on July 16, 2009 at 4:30pm —

James McRitchie

Dell

Dell's annual meeting is coming up on July 17th. I see on Proxy Democracy that CalSTRS is withholding votes on all directors, voting against ratifying the auditor, and favors both shareowner proposals:

1. Reimburse Proxy Contest Expenses (AFSCME)
2. Reduce Supermajority Vote Requirement (my proposal)

Supermajority requirements are most often used to block initiatives supported by shareowners but opposed by management, such as entrenchmen… Continue

Posted on July 9, 2009 at 10:18pm —

Comment Wall (23 comments)

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At 2:24pm on August 14, 2009, Stu Dalheim said…
James, thanks for the note of welcome. We have been busy preparing comments for 3 SEC proposals that are out there now. We are defintiely stepping up opur activity on governance.

Stu
At 10:35am on August 4, 2009, Gary Larkin said…
James: I am indeed the same Gary Larkin. The object of the blog, which isn't officially off the ground yet, is to inform board members and others in the corporate governance space about key research and news. I'm not sure we make it a policy to submit comment letters. However, we do come up with best practices on many different governance issues. I'll let you know when we are going live with the blog.

Also, would you be interested in being a guest contributor?
At 5:55pm on July 24, 2009, Jim Gunning said…
Thanks for your note, Jim. And I certainly agree that blank votes should be recorded as abstentions. If fact, I surprpised that I didn't know they were counted in favor of the management position. Shame on me.

Cheers, Jim Gunning
At 10:20am on July 24, 2009, Meredith Miller said…
Hi thanks for your note. the Treasurer just joined the board of shareowners.org --we are very excited about this initiative.
At 1:10pm on July 21, 2009, Laurie McClain said…
Thanks for the heads up, James. I've made my comments as you suggested, and will spread the word. --Laurie
At 5:53pm on July 15, 2009, Glyn A. Holton said…
Thanks Jim: Let's be in touch/catch up soon. - Glyn
At 12:33pm on July 10, 2009, Kevin Shelley said…
Jim,
Thanks for the comments. I look forward to doing whatever I can to help. All the best,
Kevin
At 8:55pm on July 7, 2009, Adam Kanzer said…
Jim -
Thanks for the kind words. I'll certainly take a careful look at your petition -- sounds like a good issue that should be dealt with along with the broker votes. Might as well get it right the first time, right?
Adam
At 4:39pm on July 2, 2009, Douglas Chia said…
Jim,

I'm very interested to see where this organization goes. I'll try to post when I have something relevant to say, but my views don't always dovetail with those of the organizers. In the spirit of civil debate, I'll try to keep my posts focused on where I think we can agree, and try to leave the debates on issues where we differ to other forums. Good luck. I hope everyone involved can put on their "retail owner hats" for this.

Doug
At 3:17pm on July 2, 2009, Scott Adams said…
James,

I hear you need me to move you proposal (what is it?) at Dell. I'm there for solicitation expenses and always love pestering michael dell. So you can let Dell know i'll be moving your proposal. Let's talk late about your other ideas in you email.

Scott

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