Re: Update and summary of pending lawsuit to determine legality of the 1977 Oregon State System of Higher Education decision to divest the securities of companies doing business in Southern Africa
Re: Update and summary of pending lawsuit to determine legality of the 1977 Oregon State System of Higher Education decision to divest the securities of companies doing business in Southern Africa
Contents: Current Status of the Case • Expected Date of Decision • Significance of the Case • History of the Case • A. Pre-Litigation • B. Trial Court • Trial Court Issues • Pending Appeal • Issues on Appeal • Further Appeal • Memorandum to followers of the Oregon South Africa Divestment Law Suit (Associated Students v. Oregon Investment Council) from Michael Goldstein, of attorneys for the Associated Students of the University of Oregon, et al. The memorandum says this case will be the first appellate dec1s1on in the country on the question of whether the divestment of stock of companies doing business in South Africa is consistent with the "prudent investor" rule; virtually...
Contents: Current Status of the Case • Expected Date of Decision • Significance of the Case • History of the Case • A. Pre-Litigation • B. Trial Court • Trial Court Issues • Pending Appeal • Issues on Appeal • Further Appeal • Memorandum to followers of the Oregon South Africa Divestment Law Suit (Associated Students v. Oregon Investment Council) from Michael Goldstein, of attorneys for the Associated Students of the University of Oregon, et al. The memorandum says this case will be the first appellate dec1s1on in the country on the question of whether the divestment of stock of companies doing business in South Africa is consistent with the "prudent investor" rule; virtually all public and private universities and pension funds are governed by statutes similar to the governing Oregon statute that requires such fiduciaries to manage investments at a standard of "prudence." The memorandum says it can be expected that the decision will also have significant import concerning the general question of whether and to what extent such fiduciaries can base investment decisions on moral and ethical considerations. The memorandum says in 1977 the Oregon State Board of Higher Education, by a vote of 11 to 3, passed a resolution directing the divestment of the securities of companies doing business in South Africa; almost immediately, the Oregon Attorney General blocked this divestment, ruling by means of a written opinion, that the Board's divestment decision was illegal. The memorandum says the Attorney General claimed divestment is illegal because investment decisions made with a consideration of moral or ethical reasons constitute per se violations of the prudent investor standard; divestment would violate the supremacy clause of the U.S. Constitution as an impermissible intrusion by the state into the exclusive federal province of foreign relations.
