EU and national company law: fixation on attractiveness

The competitiveness of the European economy has been a central point of concern and, with the Better Regulation agenda, the European Commission has raised expectations, especially among SMEs. Better Regulation is seen as a dynamic process that is not just about drafting rules, but also includes the proper implementation and enforcement of the law by the Member States. In general, the justification for the Better Regulation agenda is the claim that regulatory frameworks in the EU are too unwieldy and complex. This is a major handicap on EU competitiveness, crippling European companies in relation not just to their US partners but also to emerging competitors. The question is whether these arguments hold in the field of company law. In the Member States’ national company law agendas the main worries are not related to the US or emerging competitors. After examining the various contributions to our inquiry the authors conclude that the basic element of recent national reforms of company law has been the effort to outbid direct neighbours.
The deregulation policy that characterises current national and EU company law, as presented in the overview, appears to stimulate regime-shopping inside the European Union rather than to contribute to a more sustainable legal setting.