- Cheniere Energy (NYSEMKT:LNG) investors who are filing suit say the company can’t use stock exchange rules to justify $1.86B in stock grants they claim were never legally approved by shareholders.
- The shareholders have told a Delaware judge that LNG didn’t meet the legal requirements to approve grants that made CEO Charif Souki last year's highest-paid CEO and put other top execs on a par with CEOs at companies such as American Express, Coca-Cola and Pfizer.
- The company had argued earlier it followed NYSE rules in tallying shareholder votes from 2013 which nearly tripled executive and employee stock awards in its long-term compensation plan; the investors say exchange rules aren’t considered law and can’t be used to override Delaware law and LNG’s bylaws.
- In SEC filings Friday, LNG said it would “reassess its strategy” for bonuses following shareholder backlash.