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The Death Knell for One-on-Ones?

By Thaddeus Malik and Tobias Knapp
May 27, 2004

When the Securities and Exchange Commission settled a Regulation FD enforcement action against Schering-Plough Corporation and its Chief Executive Officer in late 2003, the reaction from the pundits was swift. Repeatedly quoting a sentence from the SEC's cease-and-desist order that indicated that a violation had arisen through “a combination of spoken language, tone, emphasis, and demeanor” (emphasis added), many securities counsel began speculating that the enforcement action would irrevocably and further chill communications with securities professionals. Some went so far as to predict that so called “one-on-one meetings” with analysts should no longer be a part of a responsible company's investor relations program.

Despite the considerable publicity generated by these predictions, it appears that one-on-one meetings with securities analysts and institutional investors continue in the ordinary course for many public companies. However, it is fair to say that those engaging in these types of outreach meetings have become more cautious in their approach. After discussing these matters with chief financial officers, investor relations professionals and general counsel at a wide range of companies, we have identified below a number of trends and best practices in this area.

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