Welcome addresses


This 6th CECL conference is to take place at what could well turn out to be a pivotal moment in time for the EU and thus for Europe as a whole. An accelerated integration of the economies of Central and Eastern Europe (including Ukraine) is paramount for both peace, political stability and growing welfare. This urges the need for a convergence to common company law standards, which are devised with a keen eye for their practical use and effective applicability wherever they are needed. A switch from rule-based to principle-based economic integration is a challenge that requires a different mind-set of the Brussels’ policy makers. If not, there is a fair chance that the current momentum will be lost. There is just no alternative for intensified cooperation. Hence as managing director of CECL, together with my partner Pavlos Masouros, I am immensely proud to organize this conference together with the Krakow Allerhand Institute.	Company law reform is increasingly becoming a permanent process. The transformation and accompanying discussion goes beyond constant fine-tuning of well-established legal institutions to embark on new paradigms and to accommodate parallel developments in technology. Thus even though a certain shift towards convergence is undeniable, the end of history of corporate law, as proclaimed by Hansmann and Kraakman at the turn of millennia, has not fully materialized. Path-dependence, including cultural and institutional environment, continues to play a role defining legal developments as well as to determine, how the law on books becomes law in action. A proper identification of driving forces of company law reform as well as of the logic of any possible veto players is crucial for a successful modernisation process. The conference, that Allerhand proudly organises under the umbrella of CECL, aims at addressing the most vital issues of the reform process. The underlying idea is to shed light on these developments, including specifically legal transplants, that were, successfully, or not, implemented in countries such as Poland, Czechia, Slovakia or Romania to learn lessons for countries that are now in process of company law Europeanisation and modernisation, with special attention paid to Ukraine.	Company law reform has been an important issue during the transitional period for CEE countries. Dormant company law had to be revived in order to prepare for the modern market economy. However, that picture has changed and has become more diverse in recent years. While in some areas legal systems in CEE still have some homework to do, in others CEE countries have moved to the forefront of legal evolution – especially as path dependency is a smaller issue than in countries with entrenched positions and strong(er) vested interests. Can we learn lessons from these developments? Our upcoming CECL conference will provide ample opportunity for exploring these issues, both on a theoretical level and investigating specific issues.