Law and Economics in European Merger Control provides a thorough introduction to the economic theory underlying the regulation of mergers. The central economic concepts of efficiency and welfare are introduced and their role in the foundations of competition law is explained. Market structures of perfect competition, monopoly and oligopoly are analysed and the methods for delineating and evaluating the effects of mergers on markets are explained.
Having examined the economic context, the book then proceeds to offer an exhaustive analysis of the application of economic theory in the practice of merger regulation in Europe. Through an analysis of more than 300 competition cases the book critiques the current state of EC competition law against its economic aims, and offers views for the future development of the law. It also sets out an account of the European Commission's search for a 'more economic approach' to competition law, and analyses the policy's successes and failures.

This book explores the foundations and evolution of modern corporate fiduciary law in the United States and the United Kingdom. Today US and UK fiduciary law provide very different approaches to the regulation of directorial behaviour. However, as the book shows, the law in both jurisdictions borrowed from the same sources in eighteenth- and nineteenth-century English fiduciary and commercial law. The book identifies the shared legal foundations and authorities and explores the drivers of corporate fiduciary law's contemporary divergence. In so doing it challenges the prevailing accounts of corporate legal change and stability in the US and the UK.

This handy new book provides a reference collection of all the texts of default articles of association which have applied to companies registered since 1856. As such it offers a reference source for lawyers giving advice to private companies on the text of the articles of association relevant the point of formation of the company.
There are currently seven main sets of default articles, dating from 1856, 1862, 1906, 1908, 1929, 1948 and 1985. The 1948 and 1985 sets have been repeatedly amended. This collection of default articles will also include any new default articles under the proposed Companies Act due to follow by Regulation in 2007.
Derek French's commentary provides a summary of the law and articles of association including any changes made by the Companies Act. Each provision of each set of articles is followed by a note giving the equivalent provision in the preceding and succeeding texts so that historical development can be traced.

Studies of corporate governance traditionally focus on the governance problems of large publicly held firms, and policymakers' recommendations often focus on such firms. However most small firms, and in many countries, even many large companies, are closely held. This book provides a comprehensive account of closely held businesses and their particular governance problems. It explores current discussions and reforms in Europe, the United States, and Asia providing a state of the art account of the law and the economics.
Closely held firms encompass a vast range, from corporations with the potential to go public through family-owned firms, group-owned firms, private equity and hedge funds, to joint ventures and unlisted mass-privatized corporations with a relatively high number of shareholders.
The governance of closely held companies has traditionally been concerned with protecting investors and creditors from managerial opportunism. However, the virtual elimination of the distinction between partnerships and corporations means that an effective legal governance framework must also offer mechanisms to protect shareholders from the misconduct of other shareholders.
This volume examines policy and economic measurements to develop a framework for understanding what constitutes good governance in closely held companies. The authors examine how control is gained in the various types of closely held firms and explore the mechanisms that contribute to the development of a modern and efficient governance framework for these companies. The book concludes with an exploration of how the closely held firm is likely to stimulate growth and extend innovation and development.

This set deals with the problems generated by those cases of insolvency (either of an individual or of a company) where the presence of contacts with more than one system of law brings into operation the principles and methods of private international law (also known as conflict of laws).
Part I of the main work is mainly devoted to an examination of the body of rules and practice that has evolved in England during the course of the past two-and-a-half centuries, and surveys the current state of the law derived from a blend of statutory and case authorities. Contrasting approaches under a selection of foreign systems -- principally Australia, Canada, France and the USA -- are examined by way of comparison. There are up-to-date accounts of the circumstances under which insolvency proceedings can be opened in respect of debtors which are not primarily based in England, and of the grounds on which English courts will recognize foreign insolvency proceedings and give assistance to the foreign representative of the debtor's estate.
Part II of the main work explores the progress towards the creation of international arrangements to co-ordinate and rationalize the conduct of insolvency proceedings which have cross-border features, particularly where the debtor is capable of being subjected to concurrent proceedings in two or more jurisdictions. Central to the developments described in detail in this Part are the EC Regulation on Insolvency Proceedings and the UNCITRAL Model Law on Cross-Border Insolvency.
This set includes the supplement to the second edition, which covers key developments in case law and legislation in the subject up to October 2006, and is an essential purchasefor all who have already bought the main work. It includes the full text of the Cross-Border Insolvency Regulations 2006, along with commentary on the regulations. The supplement also includes the text of Council Regulation 694/2006, amending EC Regulation 1346/2000 on insolvency proceedings, and references to key developments in case law, including Eurofood IFSC Ltd, Daisytek ISA, and Cambridge Gas Transport Corp v Official Committee of Unsecured Creditors of Navigator Holdings plc. The commentary on case developments links back to the relevant paragraph in the main work.
New to this Edition:
New supplement updating the second edition with commentary on recent developments, to October 2006
Major recasting of chapter 6 (formerly dealing with the (by then) dormant EC Convention on Insolvency Proceedings) now giving an account of the EC Regulation on Insolvency Proceedings, in force since 31 May 02
Adjustments throughout the book to explain the impact of the Regulation on other aspects of law and practice
Full account is taken of statutory and case law developments since 1998
There is a new chapter assessing other international developments since 1998 including the ALI Transnational Insolvency Project; the World Bank Principles and Guidelines; and the UNCITRAL Legislative Guide on Insolvency Law (completed 2004)

Based upon the work done to prepare and implement a Model Law drawn up for the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), this book provides a comparative account of the laws relating to secured lending in the 27 EBRD member states in Eastern Europe (including Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Russia and the Slovak Republic). Since many of the former Soviet-bloc countries have joined the EU, increasing amounts of money are being invested by western companies and financial institutions into Eastern Europe generally. Knowledge of the applicable laws relating to security is vital to such investment and lending.
This is an explanatory and practical book. Throughout the book the theme will be what characteristics make a security law useful from a practical point of view. Hence, the purpose of the book is not merely to describe existing rules on security but to concentrate on how those rules can be made practical. The EBRD's Model Law on Secured Transactions and the EBRD's Core Principles for a Modern Security Law serve as basic reference points. In addition, the author introduces a comparative perspective in order to make the reader aware of significant differences between various national security laws. The main reference systems are English, German and US-American law. The principles of security law developed under western legal systems are contrasted with the principles of security law as they can now be described after 15 years of legal reforms in central and eastern European countries.

This is the long-awaited third edition of this highly regarded comparative overview of corporate law. This edition has been comprehensively revised and updated to reflect the profound changes in corporate law and governance practices that have taken place since the previous edition. These include numerous regulatory changes following the financial crisis of 2007-09 and the changing landscape of governance, especially in the US, with the ever more central role of institutional investors as (active) owners of corporations. The geographic scope of the coverage has been broadened to include an important emerging economy, Brazil. In addition, the book now incorporates analysis of the burgeoning use of corporate law to protect the interests of "external constituencies" without any contractual relationship to a company, in an attempt to tackle broader social and economic problems. The authors start from the premise that corporations (or companies) in all jurisdictions share the same key legal attributes: legal personality, limited liability, delegated management, transferable shares, and investor ownership. Businesses using the corporate form give rise to three basic types of agency problems: those between managers and shareholders as a class; controlling shareholders and minority shareholders; and shareholders as a class and other corporate constituencies, such as corporate creditors and employees. After identifying the common set of legal strategies used to address these agency problems and discussing their interaction with enforcement institutions, The Anatomy of Corporate Law illustrates how a number of core jurisdictions around the world deploy such strategies. In so doing, the book highlights the many commonalities across jurisdictions and reflects on the reasons why they may differ on specific issues. The analysis covers the basic governance structure of the corporation, including the powers of the board of directors and the shareholder meeting, both when management and when a dominant shareholder is in control. It then analyses the role of corporate law in shaping labor relationships, protection of external stakeholders, relationships with creditors, related-party transactions, fundamental corporate actions such as mergers and charter amendments, takeovers, and the regulation of capital markets. The Anatomy of Corporate Law has established itself as the leading book in the field of comparative corporate law. Across the world, students and scholars at various stages in their careers, from undergraduate law students to well-established authorities in the field, routinely consult this book as a starting point for their inquiries.

Church and state: a simple phrase that reflects one of the most famous and fraught relationships in the history of the United States. But what exactly is "the church," and how is it understood in US law today? In Church State Corporation, religion and law scholar Winnifred Fallers Sullivan uncovers the deeply ambiguous and often unacknowledged ways in which Christian theology remains alive and at work in the American legal imagination. Through readings of the opinions of the US Supreme Court and other legal texts, Sullivan shows how "the church" as a religious collective is granted special privilege in US law. In-depth analyses of Hosanna-Tabor v. EEOC and Burwell v. Hobby Lobby reveal that the law tends to honor the religious rights of the group-whether in the form of a church, as in Hosanna-Tabor, or in corporate form, as in Hobby Lobby-over the rights of the individual, offering corporate religious entities an autonomy denied to their respective members. In discussing the various communities that construct the "church-shaped space" in American law, Sullivan also delves into disputes over church property, the legal exploitation of the black church in the criminal justice system, and the recent case of Masterpiece Cakeshop v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission. Brimming with insight, Church State Corporation provocatively challenges our most basic beliefs about the ties between religion and law in ostensibly secular democracies.

This second edition of Merger Control in the EU provides the reader with an exhaustive analysis of the European Community rules relating to merger control, including the new EC Merger Regulation 139/2004 of 20 January 2004 which entered into force on 1 May 2004 and the latest interpretive notices adopted by the European Commission. A brand new addition to the book is the companion website which will maintain the currency of the main work after publication; a service that is free of charge to all who own a copy of the book. The European Commission has exclusive competence to authorise or prohibit concentrations which have a Community dimension. Bearing in mind the economic relevance of these operations, decisions made by the Commission have an extraordinary market impact. This work is an invaluable and precise instrument for legal practitioners and economists, as well as for those undertakings involved in merger operations or acquisitions. It will enable them to become acquainted with the Commission's policy in this field and to guide themselves through the complex procedure of notification in Brussels. It will also be useful for those merger operations which are required to follow the procedure of notification to the national competition authorities in EU Member States, since the Commission's guidelines inspire, to a large extent, the acts and decisions of the national authorities in this field. This book analyses the issues related to merger control not only from a legal standpoint, but also from an economic one. It is a product of the authors' knowledge and experience in Brussels as officials of DG Competition in the Commission, and as lawyers defending the interests of undertakings involved in the notification procedure.

A detailed and authoritative practitioner work on mergers and acquisitions of companies in the US and UK, this will be an important reference for lawyers on both sides of the Atlantic (including all major companies with dealings in those jurisdictions). It covers law and practice in the US and UK in equal detail: the US chapters cover both federal and key state regulatory regimes; UK chapters include coverage of the City Code and developments in the European Union.

Commercial Law comprehensively meets the needs of undergraduates studying the law relating to agency, the sale of goods and consumer credit and the detailed, critical nature of the book means that it will also be invaluable for postgraduate courses. It will be equally indispensible for practitioners seeking a detailed work of reference. Commercial Law balances a readable exposition of principle with an explanation of the policy underpinning the rules of commercial law. The law is traced from its beginnings to the present day and so the reader gains a satisfying contextual overview of the development of the rules and their changing form and function. Moreover, the law is subjected to thorough analysis, evaluation and criticism, and there is much reference to material from other jurisdictions, thereby giving the reader an informed coherent view of the law.

This investigation of the barriers to and opportunities for promoting environmental sustainability in company law provides an in-depth comparative analysis of company law regimes across the world. The social norm of shareholder primacy is the greatest barrier preventing progress, and it also helps explain why voluntary action by companies and investors is insufficient. By deconstructing the myth that shareholder primacy has a legal basis and challenging the economic postulates on which mainstream corporate governance debate is based, Company Law and Sustainability reveals a surprisingly large unexplored potential within current company law regimes for companies to reorient themselves towards sustainability. It also suggests possible methods of reforming the existing legal infrastructure for companies and provides an important contribution to the broader debate on how to achieve sustainability.

The US Department of Justice is under fire for failing to prosecute banks that caused the 2008 economic meltdown because they are too big to jail. Prosecutors have long neglected to hold corporate executives accountable for chronic mistakes that kill and injure workers and customers. This book, the first of its kind, analyzes five industrial catastrophes that have killed or sickened consumers and workers or caused irrevocable harm to the environment. From the Texas City refinery explosion to the Upper Big Branch mine collapse, the root causes of these preventable disasters include crimes of commission and omission. Although federal prosecutors have made a start on holding low-level managers liable, far more aggressive prosecution is appropriate as a matter of law, policy, and justice. Written in accessible and jargon-free language, this book recommends innovative interpretations of existing laws to elevate the prosecution of white-collar crime at the federal and state levels.

In EC Company Law Vanessa Edwards makes a detailed analysis of all the adopted company law and securities directives. She illuminates their historical context, scope, substantive effect, interpretation by the European Court of Justice and national implementation. This book also contains a thorough examination of the scope of companies freedom of establishment, reviewing in depth the case law of the Court of Justice on Article 52 of the EC Treaty in so far as it applies to corporate entities.

In a world where the grocery store may be more powerful than the government and corporations are the governors rather than the governed, the notion of corporations being only private actors is slowly evaporating. Gone is the view that corporations can focus exclusively on maximizing shareholder wealth. Instead, the idea that corporations owe duties to the public is capturing the attention of not only citizens and legislators, but corporations themselves. This book explores the deepening connections between corporations and the public. It explores timely - and often controversial - public issues with which corporations must grapple including the corporate purpose, civil and criminal liability, taxation, human rights, the environment and corruption. Offering readers an encompassing, balanced, and systematic understanding of the most pertinent duties corporations should bear, how they work, whether they are justified, and how they should be designed in the future, this book clarifies corporations' roles vis-a-vis the public.

Theories of enterprise liability have, historically, had a significant influence on the development of various aspects of the law of torts. Enterprise liability has impacted upon both statutory and common law rules. Prime examples would include laws on workmen's compensation and products liability. Of late, in a number of jurisdictions, enterprise liability has been a powerful catalyst for change in the employer's responsibilities towards third parties by prompting changes to the law on vicarious liability. The results have been seen most dramatically where the employer's responsibility for the intentional torts of employees is concerned. Recent common law reforms have not been without controversy and have raised difficult and challenging questions about the appropriate scope of an employer's responsibility. In response to this, Douglas Brodie offers a critique of the employer's common law obligations, both in tort and under the law of contract of employment.

This book provides a logically ordered guide to the substantive law and practice relating to corporate insolvency as it currently stands. Procedures for commencing and conducting various types of insolvency proceedings are set out alongside the latest legislation (the Insolvency Act 1986, the Insolvency Rules 1986 and the two Insolvency Acts of 1994) and any relevant case law which supports, modifies or interprets that legislation

The Bribery Act 2010 is the most significant reform of UK bribery law in a century. This critical analysis offers an explanation of the Act, makes comparisons with similar legislation in other jurisdictions and provides a critical commentary, from both a UK and a US perspective, on the collapse of the distinction between public and private sector bribery. Drawing on their academic and practical experience, the contributors also analyse the prospects for enforcement and the difficulties facing lawyers seeking asset recovery following the laundering of the proceeds of bribery. International perspectives are provided via comparisons with the law in Spain, Hong Kong, the USA and Italy, together with broader analysis of the application of the law in relation to EU anti-corruption initiatives, international development and the arms trade.

Corporate law and corporate governance have been at the forefront of regulatory activities across the world for several decades now, and are subject to increasing public attention following the Global Financial Crisis of 2008. The Oxford Handbook of Corporate Law and Governance provides the global framework necessary to understand the aims and methods of legal research in this field. Written by leading scholars from around the world, the Handbook contains a rich variety of chapters that provide a comparative and functional overview of corporate governance. It opens with the central theoretical approaches and methodologies in corporate law scholarship in Part I, before examining core substantive topics in corporate law, including shareholder rights, takeovers and restructuring, and minority rights in Part II. Part III focuses on new challenges in the field, including conflicts between Western and Asian corporate governance environments, the rise of foreign ownership, and emerging markets. Enforcement issues are covered in Part IV, and Part V takes a broader approach, examining those areas of law and finances that are interwoven with corporate governance, including insolvency, taxation, and securities law as well as financial regulation. Now in paperback, the Handbook is a comprehensive, interdisciplinary resource placing corporate law and governance in its wider context, and is essential reading for scholars, practitioners, and policymakers in the field.

Company law is undergoing fundamental change in Europe. All European countries have undertaken extensive reform of their company legislation. Domestic reform has traditionally been driven by corporate failures or scandals. Initiatives to make corporate governance more effective are a feature of recent European law reform, as are measures to simplify and ease burdens on smaller and medium-sized businesses (SMEs). An increasing EU harmonisation is taking place through the Company Law Directives, and the free movement of companies is also facilitated by the case law of the European Court of Justice on the directives and the right to free movement and establishment in the EC Treaty. New European corporate forms such as the European Economic Interest Grouping (EEIG) and the European Company (SE) have added new dimensions. At a time of rapid development of EU and national company laws, this book will aid the understanding of an emerging discipline.

This in-depth comparative examination of the derivative action in Asia provides a framework for analysing its function, history and practical application and examines in detail how derivative actions law works in practice in seven important Asian jurisdictions (China, Hong Kong, India, Japan, Korea, Taiwan and Singapore). These case studies allow an evaluation of a number of the leading Western comparative corporate law and governance theories which have come to define the field over the last decade. By debunking some of these critically important theories, this book lays the foundation for an accurate understanding of the derivative action in Asia and a re-examination of the regulation of the derivative action around the world.

This book examines reforms in company and takeover law, crucial to modern business and economics. Reform activity is underway in the UK, Germany, France, Italy, and most other member States of the European Union. In addition, the EU is developing its own rules and reform plans. The European 13th directive was enacted in December 2003- this requires modifications of member State takeover law. The European Commission has outlined the company law action plan which will lead to important directives from 2004 to 2010. This book is the first to deal comprehensively with both the 13th directive and the EU company law action plan, providing commentary on the action plan, and critically assessing what the future may hold. The takeover law provisions in the 13th directive, including the 'break-through' rule and the controversial level playing field for takeover activities amongst European member states and between them and the United States are examined. The contributions also address a wide range of topical issues including corporate disclosure, board structure, the role of non-executive and supervisory directors, remuneration of directors, responsibility of the management and the board, personal liability of board members, auditors, and conflicts of interest. The company law action plan and the two reports of the High Level Group of Company Law Experts upon which the plan was based are reproduced in full in a useful annex.