You know that directors are nervous when they start cutting their own pay, which is exactly what has happened on many top boards as of late, notes a commentary in the Wall Street Journal. The article argues that there really is fire being held to the feet of directors of top companies. While Sarbanes-Oxley made directors more likely to get sued, we really didn't see that materialize.

But now the challenges are even greater, and this commentary argues that boards are more deserving than ever of good pay. IT makes a lot of sense for a board that has been overhauled, to grapple with an ailing company. I'm all for paying new, independent directors at TARP banks a decent wage, as long as it's heavy on stock. But for directors who twiddled their thumbs while their companies burned, well, they are certainly less deserving. In any case, it will be interesting to see how big this issues gets as proxy season rolls on. My sense is that it will remain a second-tier issue. 

For more:
- here's the WSJ commentary

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