Office of the Attorney General v. Institutional Shareholder Services Inc.

The Florida Attorney General filed a lawsuit in Florida Circuit Court against the proxy advisers Institutional Shareholder Services, Inc. (ISS) and Glass, Lewis & Co. LLC (Glass Lewis) to enjoin alleged violations of the Florida Antitrust Act and the Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act. The Attorney General’s complaint alleged that the ISS and Glass Lewis “dominate” the industry of advising institutional investors on how individual shareholders should vote and that they use that influence “to push their own dogmatic agenda,” which the complaint alleges includes “an insistence that concerns about global climate change should influence every company’s decision-making.” The complaint asserted that the defendants deceived and misled Florida consumers, that their activities constituted “unfair practices,” and that they engaged in conduct constituting a contract, combination, or conspiracy in restraint of trade within Florida. The Attorney General requested declaratory and injunctive relief, civil penalties, attorneys’ fees, and actual and treble damages.