HP Fight Forecasts Stormy Proxy Season
Companies are battling proxy initiatives across the country. Now, shareholders are lashing out with lawsuits, such as the two against Hewlett-Packard
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In what promises to be one of this proxy season's fiercest debates, investor groups led by unions have filed two lawsuits against Hewlett-Packard (HPQ) to force the company to include a resolution on director elections in its 2007 proxy statement.
On Jan. 23, the American Federation of State, County & Municipal Employees (AFSCME) and the Connecticut Retirement Plans & Trust Funds sued the computer giant in U.S. District Court in Connecticut. The lawsuit asks the court to force HP to include in this year's proxy a proposed change to company bylaws that would make it easier for shareholder groups to run their own candidates for board elections.