Warren Buffett, Berkshire Hathaway face lawsuit over treatment of shareholder proposal presenter

The Berkshire Hathaway annual meeting took an unexpected turn this year as shareholder Peter Flaherty filed a federal lawsuit against Warren Buffett and the company for the way he was treated during last year’s meeting. Flaherty, who was cut off in the middle of his presentation and arrested for trespassing, decided to take legal action to stand up for shareholders’ rights to bring proposals.

The issue stemmed from Flaherty questioning the character of Bill Gates, a close friend of Buffett and former Berkshire board member, over his association with Jeffrey Epstein. Flaherty proposed that someone else should take Buffett’s chairman title while leaving him as CEO to protect Berkshire’s reputation.

Despite the lawsuit and Flaherty’s persistence, all six proposals, including those on climate change risks and diversity efforts, were rejected at this year’s meeting. Buffett, who controls a significant portion of the vote, remained silent during the business meeting and let his eventual successor, Vice Chairman Greg Abel, take the lead.

While Berkshire argued against the need for additional oversight on safety and reports on China-related risks, Flaherty’s proposal for a report on doing business in China was summarily rejected. The meeting highlighted the ongoing tensions between shareholders and the company’s leadership, with Flaherty’s lawsuit underscoring the importance of shareholder rights in corporate governance.