Journal Article Suggests Repeal Of Defensive Tactics Policy

Stikeman Elliott partners Sean Vanderpol and Ed Waitzer recently published an article in the Osgoode Hall Law Journal that questions the current emphasis on the primacy of shareholder choice in the case of take-over transactions under Canadian securities regulations. Entitled Mediating Rights and Responsibilities in Control Transactions, the paper states that such a shareholder-centric approach is difficult to reconcile with the powers and responsibilities allocated to boards under Canadian corporate law and ultimately suggests that regulators repeal National Policy 62-202 Take-over Bids - Defensive Tactics. The paper follows a post from January of this year, in which the authors cast doubt on the utility of the National Policy.