Warren Buffett's company rejects proposals, but it faces lawsuit over how it handled one last year

OMAHA, Neb. -- Shareholder proposals are usually uneventful astatine Berkshire Hathaway's yearly meeting. But Warren Buffett and the institution are present facing a suit implicit the mode 1 presenter was treated past year.

Peter Flaherty with the National Legal and Policy Center came backmost with different connection this twelvemonth connected a antithetic taxable adjacent aft helium was chopped disconnected successful the mediate of his presumption past twelvemonth and arrested for trespassing. The charges were aboriginal dropped, but Flaherty decided to writer due to the fact that of the mode helium was treated to basal up for immoderate shareholder who wants to bring a proposal. He said helium had ne'er had occupation astatine dozens of meetings helium has presented astatine since 2005, including Berkshire’s 2022 meeting.

“I’ve ne'er been interrupted portion making a shareholder presentation. I’ve ne'er had my mic cut, and I’ve ne'er been removed from a gathering room. And I’ve surely ne'er been arrested,” Flaherty said, “Those things were unprecedented for me.”

The contented past twelvemonth was that Flaherty questioned the quality of 1 of Buffett's champion friends and a erstwhile Berkshire committee member, Bill Gates. Flaherty suggested that Buffett's adjacent relation with Gates could wounded Berkshire's estimation due to the fact that of reports that Gates had been associated with Jeffrey Epstein earlier helium was arrested for enactment trafficking. So helium was proposing that Berkshire springiness idiosyncratic other Buffett's president rubric portion leaving him arsenic CEO.

Buffett has donated billions to Gates’ instauration implicit the years and plans to springiness him the bulk of his luck to distribute.

Berkshire didn't instantly respond to the national suit that was filed Friday, and it wasn't mentioned during Saturday's meeting. Berkshire officials didn't adjacent code immoderate of the proposals during the gathering — alternatively they relied connected their statements of absorption that were filed successful the authoritative gathering proxy.

Buffett stayed soundless during the concern gathering aft spending each time Saturday answering shareholder questions astatine the main portion of the shareholder meeting. He fto his eventual successor Vice Chairman Greg Abel instrumentality the lead. He lone reminded the presenters of each six proposals to support their comments related to the proposals.

Flaherty’s connection was 1 of six rejected astatine Berkshire’s gathering this year. They were each opposed by the board, and Buffett inactive controls astir one-third of the ballot truthful thing helium opposes is astir definite to fail. None of the proposals received much than 85,000 votes. Flaherty’s connection lone drew 6,150 votes portion getting 443,544 votes against it.

Some of the different proposals rejected Saturday included ones to necessitate Berkshire to make reports connected clime alteration risks and diverseness and inclusion efforts astatine the monolithic conglomerate. Another connection would person required Berkshire to make a committee committee focused connected railroad safety.

The information main for the SMART-TD obstruction national that represents conductors and different obstruction workers, Jared Cassity, said that if BNSF wants to reason that information is the railroad's apical priority, Berkshire's committee should absorption connected it and reappraisal staffing and operational practices to assistance forestall derailments similar the disastrous 1 Norfolk Southern had past twelvemonth successful East Palestine, Ohio.

“Railroad information requires effectual committee oversight,” Cassity said.

Berkshire argued that BNSF is already focused connected improving information and doesn't request much oversight.

With respect to the different proposals, Berkshire officials argued that specified reports would beryllium cumbersome due to the fact that of the decentralized mode the institution is tally and unnecessary. Plus, immoderate of its subsidiaries similar its monolithic inferior portion already nutrient reports connected greenhouse state emissions, Berkshire said.

This year, Flaherty was allowed to marque his lawsuit that Berkshire should nutrient a study connected the risks of doing concern successful China, earlier the connection was summarily rejected.

“China poses unsocial risks for Berkshire Hathaway,” Flaherty said, arguing that the company's existing disclosures astir subsidiaries similar Fruit of the Loom that person factories successful China are inadequate.