Clifford Chance

We explore the latest reporting requirements and best practice guidance that UK listed companies must bear in mind when preparing their 2022 Annual Reports. We also highlight the five top considerations for the 2023 Annual General Meeting season.

Our Global Board Diversity tracker sets the global context and provides a snapshot of legal and regulatory requirements on a jurisdiction by jurisdiction basis in key financial markets – and consequences for failure to comply. This guide helps to establish next steps for all those involved in benchmarking board diversity.

The 2022 AGM season has seen a significant return to physical in-person AGMs, lower attendance figures, a rise in shareholder activism and innovative tactics used by protestors to seek to disrupt meetings. In this AGM review we explore the latest trends and set out some initial thoughts on what companies should be considering for next year.

On 28 July 2021, the FCA launched a consultation (CP21/24) on proposals to improve transparency for investors on the diversity of listed company boards and their executive management teams.

Activist shareholders and NGOs targeting governments and businesses in relation to climate change are increasingly turning to litigation.

Despite the progress being made with the UK's Covid-19 vaccination programme, the upcoming AGM season will likely see many of the same challenges posed by the global pandemic as in the last one.