Australian companies listed on the ASX must report on their corporate governance practices on the basis of comply or explain. That is, they are not required to comply with all of the specific corporate governance practices recommended by the ASX but if they choose not to comply, they must identify which guidelines have not been ignored and provide a reason for their lack of compliance.

(a) Examine the corporate governance disclosures of some Australian listed companies and identify any instances where best practice recommendations of the ASX have not been met.

(b) Do you believe that the noncompliance in these instances is justified?

(c) What are the advantages of having a comply or explain requirement rather than requiring all companies to comply with all best practice recommendations?