The American College of Governance Counsel, an invitation-only association of corporate governance lawyers, has elected chief legal officer Deborah Majoras of Procter & Gamble Co. and general counsel Alex Dimitrief of General Electric Co. to its new class of fellows.

The new fellows were elected “following a rigorous selection process that considered the candidates' professional accomplishments as well as their contributions to the field of governance through speaking, writing or other thought leadership activities,” said a Wednesday statement from Frank Placenti, president of the college and a partner at Squire Patton Boggs in Phoenix. Dimitrief and Majoras were not immediately available for comment.

They join other in-house counsel who are fellows, including general counsel Robert Bostrom of Abercrombie & Fitch Co.; GC Dorian Daley of Oracle Corp.; chief governance officer Margaret Foran of Prudential Financial Inc.; global GC David Leitch of Bank of America; GC Michele Coleman Mayes of the New York Public Library; and GC Kim Rucker of Tesoro Corp.

The college also chose 20 veteran attorneys from 18 different law firms as fellows, as well as three law professors from Harvard Law School, University of Pennsylvania Law School and New York University School of Law. The organization has just over 100 fellows and honorary fellows.

The college promotes professional standards and seeks a better understanding and broader adoption of best governance practices in business, according to a statement from John Olson, college chair and a founding partner of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher in Washington, D.C. The college is both a professional and an honorary association.

Among other programs, the college has sponsored a fall colloquium the past two years and issued related annual reports on key governance themes, trends and priorities.

The November 2016 report, for example, highlights such trends as:

• A move away from shareholders choosing short-term gains over long-term value.

• A continued increase in assets invested in exchange-traded funds, where significant voting power may eventually be held.

• A growing demand from companies for private ordering and other unique capital structures.

• The first ever issuance of public company digital securities using blockchain technology, along with the governance implications that accompany such new tech.