Monday January 14 2013
News Source: Global Disclosures
Focus: Takeover and Acquisition
Type: General
Country: European Union
The European Commission has published its 2013 Action Plan on company law and corporate governance for EU major sharholdings and EU takeovers.
The Action Plan announces 16 different actions to be taken by the Commission. Some of these will be proposals for new legislation; others could require soft law (recommendations and corporate governance codes) or an information campaign, but all are priority actions.
Key elements of the action plan include:
1. Increasing the level of transparency between companies and their shareholders in order to improve corporate governance.
2. Initiatives aimed at encouraging and facilitating long-term shareholder engagement.
3. Initiatives in the field of company law to support European businesses and encourage their growth and competitiveness.
In addition, the action plan foresees merging all major company law directives into a single instrument. This would make EU company law more accessible and comprehensible and reduce the risk of future inconsistencies.
In particular, the Commission will in 2013 be working closely with competent national authorities and the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) with a view to developing guidance to increase legal certainty as regards the relationship between investor cooperation on corporate governance issues and the rules on acting in concert.