Arthur GoldenThomas Reid, and Laura Turano are pleased to be the contributing editors to the third edition of Getting the Deal Through: Shareholder Activism & Engagement 2018, a volume that provides an overview of the rapidly evolving global shareholder activism and engagement landscape. 

As we look back on 2017, we note several emerging trends. Unlike 2016, where campaigns against small- to mid-cap targets were in vogue, in 2017 in the United States we saw activist mainstays returning to the scene to take sizable positions in, and in some cases wage public fights with, some of the largest companies in the United States, including ADP (Pershing Square), Bristol-Myers Squibb (JANA Partners), CSX (Mantle Ridge), DowDuPont (Glenview, Third Point, Trian Partners), GE (Trian Partners), Honeywell (Third Point) and Procter & Gamble (Trian Partners).  Outside of the U.S., the prevalence of international campaigns continues to rise, with the number and magnitude of campaigns waged in each of Asia, Australia and Europe increasing as compared to years past.

Looking ahead to 2018, we expect the United States and U.S.-based companies alike to play a leading role in shaping the shareholder activism and engagement marketplace, and expect shareholder activism in other jurisdictions to mature and diverge in new and surprising ways that we will closely follow with great interest. 

Getting the Deal Through: Shareholder Activism & Engagement 2018, is a collection of contributions from practitioners across the globe that each provide insight into developments and trends from the last year in the shareholder activism and engagement landscape.  Davis Polk lawyers were the authors for the France, United Kingdom and United States chapters of the volume.

Will Pearce and Fiona Tregeagle are pleased to have contributed the UK chapter focusing on the law and regulation relating to shareholder activism and engagement, the tools that activists have available and recent trends and developments in the UK.

Reproduced with permission from Law Business Research Ltd. For further information on Getting the Deal Through: Shareholder Activism & Engagement 2018, please visit www.gettingthedealthrough.com.