As has been reported, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit has decided that Wal-Mart does not have to include in its 2015 proxy materials a shareholder proposal requesting that the Compensation, Nominating and Governance Committee charter be amended to add oversight of implementation of policies that would evaluate whether the company should sell certain types of guns that the proponent argues endangers public safety, has the substantial potential to impair the company’s reputation or would be considered offensive to the values that are integral to the company’s brand.

The court order was made in time for Wal-Mart to distribute its proxy materials.  A full opinion will be issued later.

We previously discussed the appeals here and here, and the district court ruling here.


This communication, which we believe may be of interest to our clients and friends of the firm, is for general information only. It is not a full analysis of the matters presented and should not be relied upon as legal advice. This may be considered attorney advertising in some jurisdictions. Please refer to the firm's privacy notice for further details.