What are the legal limits of the European Communityand#8217;s competence in the
matter of company law? As many company law instruments have already emerged as
a result of the European Commissionand#8217;s Action Plan to Modernize Company Law of
May 2003 and various new modernization instruments are still expected to
follow, this question has become particularly important. In case an EC company
law instrument is in breach of the above limits, its legality may be
challenged before the European Court of Justice; significantly, since adoption
of the Action Plan the Court of Justice has indeed issued several rulings on
the lawfulness of such instruments.

This new book offers a substantial framework for examining the competence or
powers of the EC in the field of company law, and the requirements for the
lawful exercise of these powers (the principle of subsidiarity and the
observance of Article 43 EC in particular). In order to provide a clear
understanding of the practical relevance of this framework, the author tests
the provisions of specific EC company law instruments for compatibility with
the EC Treaty. Although the substantial body of EC company law that has been
built up over the years is covered, the focus is on EC company law instruments
which have been adopted in implementation of the 2003 Action Plan. The book
includes a survey of the various company law instruments (both pre- and
post-Action Plan) which together make up EC company law, and discusses the
objectives of EC company law policy.

Among the specific elements covered are the following:

;


• 
  the freedom of establishment for companies;
  


• 
  free movement of capital;
  


• 
  transfer of a companyand#8217;s seat;
  


• 
  cross-border conversions;
  


• 
  cross-border merger operations;
  


• 
  recognition of companies;
  


• 
  the breakthrough rule on takeover bids;
  


• 
  the mandatory bid;
  


• 
  shareholder rights;
  


• 
  minimum capital requirements;
  


• 
  Community legal forms of enterprise; and
  


• 
  regulatory competition.
  

Modernization of European Company Law and Corporate Governance will be
welcomed by lawyers, academics and policymakers for a variety of reasons and#8211; as
the clearest analysis available of the ongoing impact of the Action Plan, as a
practical investigation of the interface between company law and EC law, and
as a point of departure for investigation on the limits of competence in such
related fields as EC contract law and EC securities law.