Director compensation issues are important, as the role of directors is to monitor managers on behalf of shareholders in the context of agency theory. However, recent research and real world anecdotes demonstrate that directors behave like friends of managers. In today's corporate environment, shareholders are supposed to take more action to monitor managers and directors. After the passage of the Dodd-Frank Act (2010), shareholder activism has been particularly more visible. This research aims to investigate director compensation issues in the oil and gas firms utilizing post-Dodd-Frank Act data. We focus on a single industry to understand better the determinants of external director compensation using current data.

Director Compensation for the Oil and Gas Industry: An Update. Cheng, Xiaoyan; Kwak, Wikil; Kealey, Burch; and File, Richard, Fall/Winter 2014, pp. 1‑14.

This paper discusses the federal tax implications of the definition of capital assets and sale of partnership interest under Section 1221; ordinary income reportable on sale of partnership interest, Sections 1245 and 1254 recapture; issues and problems for calculation of recapture under Section 751; and ordinary income reportable on sale of S Corporation stock holding oil and gas properties.

Tax Consequences of Sales of Partnership Interests and S Corporation Stock Owning Oil and Gas Properties. Pulliam, Robert D., Fall/Winter 2014, pp. 15‑21.

This article provides an analysis of the costs and effects of utilizing conventional energy as a partial or complete replacement to supplant conventional energy sources to help determine what conditions would be necessary to make such changes and whether the cost would be worth it.

Is Renewable Energy Viable? Smith, Robert P., Fall/Winter 2014, pp. 22‑43.

Recently, the SEC further highlighted the importance of diversity in corporate governance by requiring firms to disclose how they evaluate candidates for positions on their boards of directors. This study investigates the extent of board gender diversity among energy firms in the aftermath of the SEC's disclosure requirement.

Women and Boards of Directors: An Update on Gender Diversity in the Energy Sector. Wilson, Tom, Fall/Winter 2014, pp. 44‑54.

There are a number of transactional, reporting, regulator, and legal reasons why it may be necessary to estimate the value of proven and prospective oil and gas properties. This article is not intended to provide a comprehensive description of all the valuation methods and metrics that are available, but rather to discuss some of the commonly-used methodologies and resources and to point out some of the inherent advantages and challenges.

Fair Market Value and Valuation Methods of Oil and Gas Properties. Wright, Charlotte and Cornell, Robert M., Fall/Winter 2014, pp. 55‑76.

This article discusses trends reflected in the 2014 Grant Thornton LLP survey of U.S. oil and gas companies, conducted in partnership with Hart Energy.

Survey Reveals Big Growth, Challenges for Energy Industry. Grant Thornton LLP, Fall/Winter 2014, pp. 77‑84.

COPAS is the only authoritative body that develops and publishes the standards and guidelines regarding oil and gas contracts and establishes the guidelines by which accountants perform their day-to-day functions. Mr. Wierman provides a 2014 COPAS update

COPAS Update. Wierman, Tom, Fall/Winter 2014, pp. 85‑88.