In this issue we bring you the third installment of the Directorship 100, which celebrates those whose influence on boardroom issues furthers the state of corporate governance in the United States and around the world. As directors move to put the events of the past year and a half behind them, they are finding that the business of overseeing a company will never be the same. Directors are more attuned to the requirements of their office than ever before. They are spending more time on risk oversight, meeting more frequently to discuss strategy, and calling on more experts to provide counsel on the difficult issues they contend with. In most cases, they have moved quickly to address the issues that threatened the financial system and led to a crippling recession. But they do not take on these challenges alone. An extended cast of executives, shareholders, regulators, auditors, advisors, commentators, and lawyers influences corporate governance.

It is telling that for the second year in a row we have given top billing to a regulator. This year’s most influential person in the boardroom is U.S. President Barack Obama. (Last year, it was Congressman Barney Frank, chairman of the House Committee on Financial Services.) Obama and his team have moved quickly, in FDR fashion, to stabilize the markets, shore up the financial system, and inject stimulus into the economy. For now, these measures seem to be working. It is likely that Obama’s team of financial minds will set their sights on putting measures into place to discourage the malevolent behavior that led to crisis. Most executives and directors favor some form of common-sense reform. In fact, many CEOs, such as Goldman Sachs’ Lloyd Blankfein, have been proactive in calling for sensible reforms on executive pay practices and in other areas.

Finally, I want to thank you, our readers, for your input on the list through the numerous polls and online surveys we issued. The Directorship 100 is meant to begin the dialogue, not to end it. So, please join the discussion online at www.directorship.com/D100-2009.

Get the latest on the leading boardroom legal counsel, including recent high-profile cases and the attorneys that specialize in the areas that are most relevant to directors. >>>

We overhauled our website www.directorship.com with more blogs and commentary, more board news, and more features, not to mention a new look.

Release of final policy statement eliminates restrictions, but could make it less likely that private equity investors will participate in acquisitions of failed banks.

“The view that the financial crisis had elements of a classic panic, particularly during its most intense phases, has helped to motivate a number of the Federal Reserve’s policy actions.”
Ben S. Bernanke
Chairman
U.S. Federal Reserve Bank

“I have never written you, or spoken to you, in greater kindness of feeling than now, nor with a fuller purpose to sustain you, so far as in my most anxious judgment, I consistently can. But you must act.”
-Abraham Lincoln
to Gen. McClellan
1862

With revenues in decline New Corp. looks for new avenues for growth.

Two leading advisors are advocating a similar message: “listen to the angel on your shoulder and your businesses will profit.”

The reality is that Texas is full of diverse and thriving business communities.

The Obama administration is not planning to force General Motors Corp into bankruptcy next week and the outcome of the automaker’s restructuring efforts may not be known until a June 1 deadline.

Bankruptcy for CIT Group Inc. is more likely after denial for additional relief from the Federal Reserve, Treasury, and FDIC.

The International Corporate Governance Network held its annual conference in Sydney, Australia this week, drawing together 420 delegates from 37 countries.

Four months after its formation, the Investors’ Working Group has released its recommendations for reshaping the United States regulatory climate.

The Securities and Exchange Commission said it charged 11 people in connection with separate insider trading schemes related to acquisition deals at two different companies.

Bank of America has been placed under a regulatory sanction that requires the firm to redesign both its board and its policies towards risk and liquidity.

Bernard L. Madoff’s accountant, David G. Friehling, agreed to waive an indictment, a move that result in him pleading guilty in an investigation into the multibillion-dollar fraud.

Executives at Goldman Sachs sold almost $700 million worth of stock following the collapse of Lehman Brothers last September.

Steven Rattner, chief architect of the bailouts of General Motors and Chrysler, is leaving the Obama administration after less than six months serving as auto czar.

The reinsurance branch of Berkshire Hathaway is amending its investment policies to avoid the more riskier aspects of the business.