Nasdaq Webinar Highlights Chevron Ruling and Implications for Boards

In a recent webinar, the Nasdaq Center for Board Excellence held a webinar titled, “Regulatory Update: The Chevron Ruling and its Implications for Boards.” The program, while geared toward all categories of directors, discusses the impact of the Loper Bright and Relentless, Inc. decisions impacting the 40-year precedent of the Chevron Doctrine, in which courts defer, under certain circumstances, to agencies’ reasonable interpretation of the statutes they administer. The panelists included Nasdaq’s Brett Kitt, Greg Garre (former U.S. Solicitor General and current partner at Latham & Watkins), and Doris Meister (former Chairman and CEO of the Wilmington Trust Company). The panelists highlighted the facts of each case, key points of the Supreme Court opinions, and discussed how the regulatory landscape would likely be impacted.

Mr. Garre noted “going forward, agencies are going to have to be much more careful in their interpretations of a statute because they know that they can no longer rely on this crutch that they have been for decades, that instead of having to show that their interpretation is correct, they just have to show in a case where the statute is ambiguous that their interpretation is reasonable.” Ms. Meister stated that “the most important thing for boards to look at in their role of oversight, insight, and foresight is to make sure that the company that they are overseeing has a renewed or a revamped or updated regulatory policy and an approach in place…” She further highlighted that it could be beneficial to look at past decisions because there may be an opportunity to go back to particularly onerous regulations where the Court relied on Chevron. However, Ms. Meister underscored that “I have always approached regulators with respect and wanted to have a good mutual relationship, understanding their role and understanding what certain rulings or regulations were actually doing to impact the business.”

Click here to watch the Nasdaq Center for Board Excellence Webinar on the Chevron Ruling and Implications for Boards.