Shareholder withdrawal in close corporations: an Anglo-German comparative analysis

Abstract

ABSTRACT Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are important to most economies, but the laws of close corporation entities used by SMEs are underrepresented in comparative corporate law scholarship. This Article critically analyses ‘withdrawal’ regimes in Germany's GmbH (Austritt aus wichtigem Grund) and the UK's private company limited by shares (unfair prejudice remedy) that respond to shareholder conflicts in close corporations. Comparative analysis reveals how the two jurisdictions differ in treatment of ‘non-fault’ scenarios and their underlying visions of shareholder protection. Potential reform of the UK's withdrawal regime based on German and Singapore law is also explored.