In no other corporate context than a hostile takeover, sustainable value creation is so mercilessly challenged. Empirical findings show however that an increasing number of Dutch listed companies have incorporated sustainability as a statutory objective in their articles of association. Sustainability has also been adopted as a corporate governance principle in the amended Dutch Corporate Governance Code 2016. Moreover, in recent international hostile takeover attempts, boards of directors of companies, such as Akzo Nobel and Unilever used sustainability arguments to resist takeover attempts.

When confronted with a hostile takeover conflict, judges may choose to include sustainability arguments in their decision making. However, little is known about “if”, and if so “how”, and “why” judges include sustainability arguments in their deliberations. Studies on how judges perceive sustainability and take this principle into account when considering the issue of corporate interest in a hostile takeover context, are non-existent. This research project addresses this omission and aims to significantly advance theoretical and legal understanding of the relevance of sustainability in business and legal decision making on hostile takeovers. Better understanding of the role of sustainability in judicial deliberations may contribute to further elaboration and integration of sustainability in the corporate governance framework.

The Dutch legislator has undertaken efforts to protect the Dutch public interests as part of an adjusted state economic policy against takeovers that are undesirable from a societal perspective because of possible risks for national security or public order. Starting point of this project is an analysis with a company law focus of the proposed Bill on unwanted influence on telecommunication, that could serve as a format for a more general Act that would encompass other sectors of the Dutch economy.

Research: Cees de Groot

Corporate groups (and groups that are built up of other legal persons than corporations, e.g. foundations or associations) are an important element in today’s economy. A group may consist of just two corporations, but can also consist of well over a thousand corporations. Groups pose several questions that are addressed by this research project. It aims at investigating the way in which groups are governed internally and the consequences that failure to set up proper group governance may have in terms of accountability and liability. Liabilities could include liability of a parent company for the debts of its subsidiary companies or liability of the directors of a parent company for failure to install sound group governance.