IR directions: Guidance Practices looks at how many Canadian issuers are providing guidance as well as the type, time horizon and frequency of their guidance; how guidance is communicated; and whether changes in guidance practices might be on the horizon. This report establishes a benchmark from which CIRI can conduct subsequent guidance surveys and monitor the evolution of guidance practices going forward.
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The last quarter of 2014 saw a number of legal developments that may specifically affect private companies in the oil and gas industry. Below, we've compiled a list of key developments in Canadian law and regulatory practice since October 27, 2014 that may be of particular interest.
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Remember back when chief financial officers were only expected to be whizbang accountants?
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On January 26, 2015, the Ontario Securities Commission issued the results of a staff review of disclosure relating to distributions by Ontario-based real estate investment trusts (OSC Staff Notice 51-724 - Report on Staff's Review of REIT Distributions Disclosure). The Report highlights several areas where the OSC believes REIT disclosure could be improved.
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The CSA published a consultation paper setting out a proposed approach for addressing concerns in respect of proxy voting in August 2013. At the time, the CSA focused on two main issues, namely vote reconciliation and end-to-end vote confirmation. The Ontario Securities Commission and other provincial regulators also subsequently held roundtable discussions on the issues and ultimately identified two key themes emanating from the roundtable discussions and comment letters received in response to the consultation paper namely that securities regulators need to take a leadership role in reviewing the accuracy of vote reconciliation and that over-voting (as re-defined by them) is occurring although there is no consensus as to the cause or a solution.
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While it’s still only January (at least for a few more days) and people are still greeting each other with "Happy New Year," it's never too early to look into the future to see how the year might unfold in the securities
industry. Here are some trends and predictions for early 2015.
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The allegations were as explosive as they were seemingly ridiculous - that a wiretap intercepted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation overheard a Russian plot to learn more about high-frequency trading to cause instability in markets.
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At the end of last week, as discussed here, proxy advisory firm Glass Lewis told the WSJ that, in some circumstances, it may recommend against company nominees for director when the company excludes a shareholder proposal for proxy access on the basis of a conflicting management proposal. That announcement followed statements from the SEC advising that Corp Fin would not express its views on the application of Rule 14a-8(i)(9) - which permits exclusion of shareholder proposals on the basis of conflicting management proposals - during the current proxy season.
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A growing collective of multibillion-dollar investment funds - including several of the nation's largest public pensions - are pushing companies to open up their board nominations to shareholders.
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