Aaron Briggs is of counsel in Gibson Dunn’s San Francisco, CA office, where he works in the firm’s securities regulation and corporate governance practice group.  Mr. Briggs’ practice focuses on advising public companies of all sizes (from pre-IPO to mega-cap), with a focus on technology and life sciences companies, on a wide range of securities and governance matters, including:

• SEC compliance matters, including Exchange Act reporting, Securities Act registration issues, earnings releases and investor presentations, financial reporting and internal/disclosure control issues, securities law compliance (e.g., Section 16, Reg FD, Reg G, insider trading), auditor issues
• Corporate governance matters, including compliance with state corporate laws and NYSE/Nasdaq requirements, board/committee operations effectiveness, board evaluations, board composition and diversity, independence issues, fiduciary duties
• ESG and sustainability matters, including disclosure, integrated reporting, engagement with ratings agencies and other stakeholders, risk management, board oversight
• Investor engagement matters, including disclosure usability and proxy/10-K redesigns, investor and proxy advisory firm expectations and engagement, shareholder communication effectiveness
• Annual meeting matters, including proxy statement compliance and effectiveness, proxy timeline and supplier management, proxy solicitation issues and effectiveness, meeting conduct best practices and issues, virtual meeting implementation
• Shareholder activism matters, including shareholder proposals, vote-no campaigns, adverse proxy advisor vote recommendations, hedge fund activism
• Executive compensation matters, including best practices, board oversight and governance, CD&A and other disclosures, SEC registration issues, investor expectations, equity plan design

In-House Experience

Before rejoining Gibson Dunn, Mr. Briggs served for five years as Executive Counsel – Corporate, Securities & Finance, at General Electric Company.  His in-house experience—which included responsibility for SEC reporting and compliance, board governance, proxy and annual meeting, investor outreach and executive compensation matters, and included driving GE’s revamp of its full suite of investor communications (proxy statement, 10-K, earnings releases, and integrated report)—provides a unique insight and practical perspective on the issues that his clients face every day.

Awards and Accolades

In 2016, Corporate Secretary Magazine named Mr. Briggs Governance Professional of the Year. Mr. Briggs’ work has also been recognized by Financial Executives International, ReportWatch, Sustainability Investment Leadership Council, and TheCorporateCounsel.net.

Recent Publications and Speaking Engagements

Mr. Briggs is a frequent speaker on governance, proxy and securities disclosure panels and is a member of the Society for Corporate Governance.

• “Proxy Disclosure Effectiveness” chapter in A Practical Guide to SEC and Proxy Compensation Rules (co-author)
• The 2020 Proxy Season: A Season to Remember and What to Expect in 2021: Proxy Advisory Firms, Rule 14a-8 & Universal Proxy, Society for Corporate Governance Eastern Regional Conference, Virtual (October 2020)
• SEC Up Close, Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher Client Webcast, Virtual (June 2020)
• MD&A: Gearing Up for Year-End Reporting, PLI’s SEC Institute, San Francisco (December 2019)
• Key SEC Developments and Disclosure Effectiveness, CPE’s SEC Conference, San Jose (December 2019)
• Board Communications and Proxy Disclosure Effectiveness for Small and Mid-Cap Companies, Society for Corporate Governance National Conference, San Diego (June 2019)
• Challenges in 2019: What You and Your Board of Directors Should Expect, Society for Corporate Governance Western Chapter, Palo Alto (March 2019)
• 21^st Century Boards, Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher MCLE Blitz, San Francisco (January 2019)
• SEC Update and Executive Compensation Developments, Center for Professional Education SEC Conference, San Jose (December 2018)
• Disclosure 2018 and Beyond: From Cybersecurity to Human Capital, Society for Corporate Governance Eastern Regional Conference, New York (September 2018)
• SEC Reporting Primer, Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher In-House Academy, San Francisco (June 2018)
• Advanced Issues in Corporate Minutes and Drafting the Proxy Statement, Society for Corporate Governance Essentials Conference, Orlando (January 2018)
• Board Composition in a Changing Environment, Society for Corporate Governance National Conference, San Francisco (June 2017)
• Integrated Reporting, Sustainability Investment Leadership Conference, New York (May 2017)
• Sustainability for Investor Relations Professionals, National Investor Relations Institute, New York (November 2016)
• Proxy Design and Pay Ratio, TheCorporateCounsel.net Proxy Disclosure Conference, San Diego (October 2016)

Academic Experience

Mr. Briggs received his Juris Doctorate from the University of Chicago Law School in 2007, where he was a Kosmerl Scholar. He received his Bachelor of Arts with high honors from the University of Notre Dame in 2004.