State Street Execs Risk Personal Liability in Their Subjective Definition of Risk

At the annual State Street shareholder meeting, held May 18, 2022, executives told the Free Enterprise Project (FEP) that the company’s climate and diversity policies are justified due to long-term risk, but FEP representatives noted that even the executives’ assessment of risk opens them up to legal liability for self-dealing.

State Street CEO Ron O'Hanley and Amelia Fawcett, State Street’s lead independent Director, answered a question from FEP Director Scott Shepard. The exchange can be heard here. The transcription of their answers, and more information, can be found at:
https://nationalcenter.org/ncppr/2022/05/18/state-streets-subjective-definition-of-risk-opens-executives-up-to-their-own-risk-of-personal-liability-say-shareholder-activists/

Here is Shepard's question:
Year after year, Mr. O’Hanley, you claim that your embrace of ESG isn’t woke and isn’t partisan. Yet the two initiatives you most aggressively push on other corporations are equity and politically motivated carbon-elimination schedules. But equity means illegal race-, sex- and orientation-based discrimination now to make up for past discrimination until equality of outcome – irrespective of merit – is achieved. And politically driven decarbonization looks certain to decimate economies and beggar the poor and middle classes. Both are exclusively hard-left positions. There is no objective evidence to prove that they are good for any businesses. Why specifically should you not be found personally liable for the consequences of all of this self-dealing in privileging your personal policy preferences over your legal duties to shareholders and investors?