Editor's Letter: States and Directors to Watch

I want to extend a special thanks to Steven Hantler of the American Justice Partnership for his monster effort to bring together this painstaking look at what is happening on the litigation front in all 50 states. What he finds may be painful for many of you to hear, especially if you have sizable operations in states such as California, Pennsylvania, and Illinois, that are at the back of the pack. Let’s just say that these states aren’t exactly rolling out the red carpet for corporate defendants. Hantler’s message to those who think the plaintiffs’ bar is in full retreat: put down the champagne glasses, many litigation reform efforts are in danger of being reversed.

We do raise our glasses, though, to those whom we have named to our “Directors to Watch” list. Most directors attain directorships only after decades of climbing the ladder. These individuals--50 directors under the age of 50--have ascended to the boards of America’s largest companies in a relatively short time. The list includes such rising boardroom stars as Starbucks’ Mellody Hobson, New Corp.’s Viet Dinh, and Goldman’s Gary Cohn. These are the individuals whose leadership will set the agenda for decades to come. You can join us for a special forum taking place in New York on September 30, where many of these directors and others will give their insights on the issues that boards are likely to face in the next several years. Visit www.directorship.com/50under50 for more details.

Finally, I want to encourage you to provide us feedback or alert us to topics we should give more attention. And don’t forget to go to www.directorship.com for daily news, webcasts, and our new blog, The Boardroom Journal.

Joseph McCafferty

jmccafferty@directorship.com