(CN) – Shareholder concerns about gun violence do not “transcend” Wal-Mart’s interest in managing its daily business operations, including its decision to sell assault rifles, the Third Circuit ruled Monday.
Three months after vacating an injunction against Wal-Mart, the federal appeals court explained why the superstore’s 2015 proxy materials need not include a proposal advocating for board oversight of dangerous products.
Trinity Wall Street, a large Episcopal parish in New York City and one of the wealthiest religious institutions in America, had sought such relief as an owner of Wal-Mart stock.
Claiming that it wants to use its investment portfolio to advance its values, particularly focusing on the reduction of violence, the church sought to include a proposal in Wal-Mart’s proxy materials regarding sales of the Bushmaster AR-15, a high-capacity rifle.
Dubbed “The Most Wanted Gun in America” by The New York Times in 2013, the AR-15 is the civilian version of the military’s standard M-16 rifle.
Full Story @ [Courthouse News]