James D. C. Barrall

Jim Barrall is a partner in the Los Angeles office of Latham & Watkins and is the global Co-chair of the firm's Benefits and Compensation Practice. Mr. Barrall's practice focuses on:

Executive compensation
Corporate governance

Compensation related disclosure and regulatory matters
Employee benefits

He is a nationally recognized expert in the field and is regularly interviewed and quoted by such publications as The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Bloomberg BNA, Agenda, Boardmember, Corporate Secretary and C-Suite.

Mr. Barrall is a frequent author, contributing editor and lecturer on executive compensation, corporate governance, disclosure and other regulatory matters. He is a co-author of the chapter on extensions of credit to directors and officers in the American Bar Association's Practitioner's Guide to the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. He is also a frequent author of Director Notes on various compensation and governance topics for The Conference Board and is a regular contributor of posts to The Conference Board’s Governance Center Blog. Mr. Barrall has lectured at the UCLA Law School, the UCLA Anderson School of Management and the Aresty Institute of Executive Education at the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania.

Mr. Barrall is a member of the Board of Advisors of the UCLA School of Law and of the Lowell Milken Institute for Business Law and Policy and is a member of the Board of Directors of the Inner City Law Center, a non-profit provider of legal and other services to the homeless and underserved on Skid Row in downtown Los Angeles.

Mr. Barrall has more than 35 years of experience in representing companies, compensation committees and boards of directors on executive compensation, corporate governance and related disclosure matters.

Media Coverage

"Activists Score (Mostly) Symbolic Victories at Bank Annual Meetings" American Banker (2015)
"Boards Should Review Director Compensation Limits" Agenda, a Financial Times service (2015)
"ISS's Equity Plan Scorecard Is a Pillar Too Far" Agenda, a Financial Times service (2015)
"SEC Decision Could Tighten Rules on Executive Pay" Daily Journal (2015)
"SEC Set to Approve CEO Pay-Gap Disclosure Rule" The Wall Street Journal (2015)
"Seven Predictions for Boards in 2015" Agenda, a Financial Times service (2015)
"This New Rule Could Reveal the Huge Gap Between CEO Pay and Worker Pay" The Washington Post (2015)
"Funds Get Active Over Director Pay" The Wall Street Journal (2013)
"Sector Is Same, But Pay Gap Is Big for Some CEOs" The Wall Street Journal (2013)
"Wal-Mart Ties Compliance With Executive Pay" Agenda, a Financial Times service (2013)

Recent Speaking Engagements

Speaker, "Director Compensation," 21st Annual Stanford Law School Directors' College, 2015
Speaker, “Executive Compensation Litigation Update,” ABA Employee Benefits, Executive Compensation & Section 16 Subcommittee, 2014
Panelist, “Proxy Trends and How to Think About Investors,” The Conference Board, Council of Chief Legal Officers, 2014
Panelist, “What’s a Good CEO Really Worth?” The Wall Street Journal, JournalCast, 2014
Speaker, “Equipping the Board of the Future,” National Association of Corporate Directors, 2013
Speaker, “Spreecast: What’s the Matter With CEO Pay,” CFO Journal, 2013