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1 - The European Model Company Act Project

from PART I - Perspectives in company law, SECTION 1: European company law: regulatory competition and free movement of companies

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  04 August 2010

By
Theodor Baums  and
Paul Krüger Andersen
Edited by
Michel Tison ,
Hans De Wulf ,
Christoph Van der Elst  and
Reinhard Steennot
Michel Tison
Affiliation:
Universiteit Gent, Belgium
Hans De Wulf
Affiliation:
Universiteit Gent, Belgium
Christoph Van der Elst
Affiliation:
Universiteit Gent, Belgium
Reinhard Steennot
Affiliation:
Universiteit Gent, Belgium
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Summary

Introduction

On 27 and 28 September 2007, a commission formed on the initiative of the authors held its first meeting in Aarhus, Denmark to deliberate on its goal of drafting a European Model Company Act (EMCA). This project, outlined in the following pages, aims neither to force a mandatory harmonization of national company law nor to create a further, European corporate form. The goal is rather to draft model rules for a corporation that national legislatures would be free to adopt in whole or in part. Thus, the project is thought of as an alternative and supplement to the existing EU instruments for the convergence of company law. The present EU instruments, their prerequisites and limits will be discussed in more detail in Part II, below. Part III, will examine the US experience with such ‘model acts’ in the area of company law. Part IV, will then conclude by discussing several topics concerning the content of an EMCA, introducing the members of the EMCA Working Group, and explaining the Group's preliminary working plan.

European company law legislation: traditional instruments and a new tool

The limits of European company law legislation

Until now, the European Union has employed three tools to ensure that the legal rules in the area of company law are compatible with the goal of a functioning internal market: first, the harmonization of national company law through directives adopted under art.

Type
Chapter
Information
Perspectives in Company Law and Financial Regulation , pp. 5 - 17
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2009

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