Ropes Gray Cited in Harvard Law School Forum on Corporate Governance on C-Suite Compensation

In The News
December 31, 2025

Ropes & Gray was cited in the Harvard Law School Forum on Corporate Governance article for the firm's collaboration with The Conference Board on an analysis of CEO and C‑suite compensation trends.

The report explores how reported executive pay at US public companies evolved in 2025 proxy disclosures—spotlighting chief executive officer (CEO) and named executive officer (NEO) compensation, gender gaps, say-on-pay trends, and shifting practices in equity design, performance measurement, and perks.

The report highlights continued pay growth in 2025, with S&P 500 CEO median pay up 7% and Russell 3000 up 12%. The report also notes that women CEOs earned higher median pay than men despite limited representation. Additionally, the findings document increased spending on CEO personal security and identify the year’s highest‑paid CEOs, driven largely by stock incentives. The full report is available on The Conference Board’s website.