Collectivism in the C-Suite

On January 10, Federal Judge Reed O’Connor, of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas, ruled that American Airlines had violated both federal law and its fiduciary duty of loyalty to its employees by contracting with BlackRock to manage its retirement plans. BlackRock, of course, is the world’s largest asset manager and one of the world’s (erstwhile?) foremost proponents of ESG, an investment discipline under which actual or potential portfolio companies are, in part, scored by how well they meet certain environmental, social, or governance criteria.