The absurdity of marketing a bout between two black men as a proxy battle in the fight for racial equality did not seem to matter.

They can try to oust the existing board at the next meeting, but this can be almost impossible without an all-out proxy battle.

Shareholder rebellion may occur at a corporate annual meeting or through a proxy battle.

Proxy battles' success rate, at 37 per cent in 2004, grew to 40 per cent in 2005 and to 48 per cent last year.

The research group has identified 28 boardroom proxy battles scheduled for this year, suggesting that the number of cases will continue to rise this year.