Life After Politics
Shortly after his electoral defeat, Brownlee started a new law firm based in Edmonton. The United Grain Growers soon re-appointed him as their general counsel. By 1940, Brownlee had restored his career to it position before he entered politics: his firm counted a number of major agricultural companies among its clients, and the UGG too brought him considerable work. He was also hired to write a legal column for the Western Review newspaper.
In his capacity as UGG general counsel, Brownlee was responsible for its restructuring. Its bylaws provided that only farmers could buy shares directly from the company, but placed no limitation on who could buy them from other shareholders. This had the effect of limiting capital inflow, since few farmers could afford to buy shares during the depression, and transferring control of the company to non-farmers, who were purchasing shares from impoverished farmers. Brownlee's solution was to create two classes of share: an investment share with a par value of $20, and a voting share with a par value of $5. The former could be held by any person, to a maximum of 250 shares per person, while the latter could be held only by farmers, to a maximum of 25 shares per person.
Read more about this topic: John Edward Brownlee
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