In a statement dated June 20, 2006, the staff of the SEC accepted CA's
argument that the
Amalgamated Bank
Longview Collective Investment Fund's shareholder proposal to remove
directors can be considered "relating to an election for membership
on its board of directors" and therefore excluded from the company's
proxy statement under
Rule
14a-8(i)(8), a provision intended to make director nominations
subject to a separate set of SEC rules for candidate disclosures.
Amalgamated has submitted a request for full Commission review of the
staff decision, based on policy and legal issues which had not been
resolved by the Commission, and on the importance of shareholder rights
to remove directors according to the laws of Delaware (
DGCL
141(k)) and other states.
Copies of the SEC staff letter and Amalgamated's request for Commission
review have been posted on the Forum web site:
Your comments will be welcomed.
- GL