Suchergebnisse für Generalversammlung

Eigentümerstrukturen von Schweizer Aktiengesellschaften

The ownership structure of a corporation is in many respects a crucial determinant from a corporate governance perspective. In finance and business economics, a large variety of theoretical and empirical work has focused on corporate ownership structures and their implications. In the legal field, however, the topic has been rather neglected so far. This article provides an empirical study of…

Salärgovernance und neues Aktienrecht

In determining the compensation of directors and top management, the board of directors of public companies is faced with a structural conflict of interest. The aim to mitigate this conflict through an appropriate design of the procedure forms the essence of the say-on-pay rules introduced by the Swiss electorate in a public vote in 2013 and implemented on a transitional basis in the Ordinance…

Uneasy lies the head that wears a crown – Zur Rolle des Verwaltungsrates in schweizerischen Publikumsgesellschaften

The board of directors of a Swiss public company is stuck between a rock and a hard place. Shareholders breathe down directors’ necks with earnings expectations, but the results are delivered by an executive management under the board’s control rather than by the board itself. The executives who run the business on a day-to-day basis know the company better than the board. This allows them to…

Funktion(en) des Aktienrechts – vom Organisationsrecht zum Katalysator der Gesellschaftspolitik?

Swiss Corporate Law (Articles 620 et seq. of the Swiss Code of Obligations) is undergoing permanent changes since the 19^th century. Originally, these articles provided the legal basis for structuring and organizing corporations in the most efficient way – not more; therefore, the main focus was placed on protection of investors (i.e. the legal protection for both shareholders and creditors). Over…

Die virtuelle Generalversammlung

On November 23, 2016, the Federal Council published its proposal for a revised law on companies limited by shares. This article deals with the virtual general assembly, one of the key aspects in the pursued modernisation of the general assembly in the context of the proposed revision. First, it addresses the proposed amendments regarding the virtual general assembly. Second, the article analyzes…

Vertrauen, Kredit und Kreditsicherheiten

The relationship between creditor and debtor has often been described as a quintessential relationship based on trust, as evidenced by etymological origin of the term credit. Credit relationships are indeed shaped by the risk of opportunistic behavior of the debtor and principal agent problems. Limiting these risks by providing adequate incentives for cooperative behavior is a key objective in…

Stimmrechtsaktien und andere bevorzugte Aktien

There are many ways to grant privileges to specific categories of shareholders and one can distinguish between financial privileges and privileged voting rights in the general assembly of all shareholders. In future, this is to remain unchanged, and accordingly the November 2016 draft of Swiss Law on corporations does not propose any decisive modifications. With regards to the new rules for…

Das Aktienkapital im Entwurf zur Aktienrechtsrevision

On November 23, 2016, the Federal Council published its proposal for a revised law on companies limited by shares. This article deals with the share capital, one of the key aspects of the proposed revision. First, it addresses the specific characteristic of Swiss law, according to which shares have a nominal value. Second, the article analyzes how the procedures of capital changes are regulated in…

Wer kontrolliert die Aktiengesellschaft?

In Switzerland as in other countries, there is a perennial debate relating to the question of who controls a listed company, and whose interests a corporation should serve: the largest shareholders, minority shareholders, or other stakeholders? And what is the influence of management or the recent phenomenon of proxy advisors on decision-making in listed companies? The author analyzes the issues…

Stimmenmehrheit unter Verdacht: Wege und Irrwege im aktienrechtlichen Minderheitenschutz

Recent developments in the area of corporation law ­indicate a dichotomy between calls for more “shareholder democracy” and an increasing suspicion about “shareholders’ majority decisions”. Corporations have to date been governed following the model of “subjection of the minority to the majority”, with the steady approval of the courts. This guiding principle, which is at the core of a…