Think Like an Activist: Sharon Geraghty on Shareholder Engagement

Partner Sharon Geraghty has been included in Canadian Lawyer Magazine’s January 2018 digital edition discussing how businesses can best deal with shareholder activists.

“Think like an activist. Look at your company like an activist would,” Sharon told Canadian Lawyer.

The article discusses the trend of public proxy battles over the last decade which has seen a general increase over the last number of years followed by recent drop off. It explores what corporate management teams and their respective lawyers can do to mitigate the risk.

“Look at the historic return on equity. Consider the record on compensation verses performance… if you are a widely held company and there’s someone who can manage you better, you are vulnerable.”

Sharon told Canadian Lawyer poorly managed companies need to be on standby as fund management firms with a lot of capital are always on the lookout for wavering businesses.

“They will find you. You have to be better, faster, stronger,” she said.

Learn more about Torys’ board advisory and governance work by heading to the practice page.