Defense Against Activist Amidst Proxy Contest

Background

Forward Risk was engaged by an issuer to research an activist investor’s proposed board slate amidst a proxy contest.

Our Work

Our thorough and resourceful approach to public records research uncovered a sexual harassment accusation against one of the nominees. Although this nominee had never been explicitly named as a party in legal proceedings, careful examination of litigation documents referenced their professional title. This finding provided us with the clues necessary to verify the accusation against the nominee via a non-traditional document that referenced them by name, linking them to the harassment allegations.

Results

The client was able to leverage our findings to help their client mount a defense against the activist slate, who ultimately removed the nominee from their slate, a last minute change that weakened their overall position.