An increase in corporate scandals has resulted in intense public scrutiny of the manner in which companies govern themselves. Our Corporate Finance practice has a wealth of experience in corporate governance matters and is well-equipped to counsel public and private companies as they steer through the maze of new regulations and standards resulting from the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002.

The Dykema Corporate Finance practice currently represents more than twenty publicly traded corporations in roles ranging from principal outside counsel to special counsel for securities and corporate governance-related projects. Our clients represent a broad spectrum of industries and are diverse in size, with securities traded on the New York and American Stock Exchanges, the NASDAQ stock market and “over the counter.” We also represent hundreds of privately held and nonprofit entities. 

We counsel boards and board committees on a spectrum of governance-related matters, including:

• Director and officer fiduciary duties and responsibilities
• Management and third party buyout proposals
• Succession planning
• Executive compensation and termination arrangements
•  Internal investigations

We also assist our clients in the preparation of new governance procedures and policies such as:

• Corporate governance guidelines
• Codes of ethics
• Committee charters and pre-approval policies
• Nominating committee policies for shareholder proposals and director nominees
• Attorney reporting policies. 

Our Corporate Finance practice also assesses and audits the status of our clients’ existing policies and procedures in relation to best practices as well as applicable requirements. We serve as special outside counsel to audit committees, compensation committees and special board committees formed to consider transactions such as mergers or affiliated party transactions.

Dykema’s Corporate Governance Task Force is an interdisciplinary team of experienced professionals dedicated to keeping companies abreast of the rapidly changing regulations in corporate governance and related matters. The Corporate Governance Task Force includes attorneys in government policy, experienced shareholder class action and criminal defense litigation specialists and corporate lawyers with years of in-the-boardroom experience. The Task Force’s unique, highly integrated structure enables us to bring a wealth of experience quickly and efficiently and to intelligently monitor developments in corporate governance at the federal and state levels.

For more information about our Corporate Governance Practice, please contact:
Mark Metz, Leader 313-568-5434