In the wake of the high-profile 2012 Canadian Pacific Railway proxy contest and subsequent public battles involving RONA and Agrium erupting later in the year, it is clear that proxy contests have taken centre stage in the Canadian corporate landscape.
Fasken Martineau undertook an extensive empirical study of proxy contests completed in Canada over the five-year period ended December 31, 2012. Authored by M&A lawyers Aaron Atkinson, Dan Batista, and Brad Freelan, the study examines in detail the 87 proxy contests focused on change in the boardroom to identify trends in:
- Profiles of both those launching and those targeted by proxy contests
- Success rates in disrupting or maintaining the status quo
- Key tactical decisions that may have impacted outcomes
