As the fingers start to point and the public searches for understanding about the ongoing financial meltdown, members of board of directors are coming under greater scrutiny.  Some are asking whether they should bear responsibility for the financial crisis.  Nell Minow, co-founder of the The Corporate Library thinks so.

Recent landmark decisions by the Delaware Supreme Court and California’s Third Appellate District Court have clarified the duties of corporate officers to stockholders. As a result of these decisions, officers should carefully consider their role in corporate activities to assure that they are fulfilling these duties, take steps to avoid conflicts of interest and defer to the board of directors for guidance and direction where there is any possible conflict of interest.

This is the third year of double-digit increases in compensation to both individual directors and full boards according to "The Corporate Library's Annual Director Pay Survey: Director Pay 2008," released today. The median increase in total board compensation was just under 11 percent, while the median increase in compensation for individual directors was slightly higher, almost 12 percent. The survey is based on compensation data from more than 3,000 public companies and 23,000 directors, making it the most comprehensive analysis of director pay available.