Proxy Advisors Update Canadian Voting Guidelines For 2025

In late 2024, Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) and Glass Lewis, two leading North American proxy advisory firms, updated their benchmark proxy voting guidelines ahead of the 2025 proxy season. Public company investors often rely on the expertise of proxy advisory firms and follow their recommendations on how to vote at shareholder meetings. As such, voting recommendations from proxy advisory firms play a crucial role in influencing the outcome of a shareholder vote.

Both ISS and Glass Lewis maintain model guidelines for good corporate governance and update those guidelines on an annual basis. These model guidelines inform the proxy advisors' respective voting recommendations and apply to all Canadian publicly-listed issuers. ISS and Glass Lewis' updates for the 2025 proxy season provide guidance on a range of matters including, among other things, board diversity and independence, executive compensation, shareholder meeting format, and risks related