The product of a long-standing collaboration and recent collective research effort by members of the CGEUI network, The European Corporation makes an important contribution to the ongoing debate over convergence to the Anglo-Saxon model of corporate governance and persistence in corporate governance and law in Europe. This book fills the gap in the debate, and literature's lack of country-specific evidence on the evolution of ownership and control which has proven to be a serious impediment to both legal and economic analysis and evidence-based policymaking. It provides systematic and comparable accounts of ownership and control structure change (respectively persistence) in large firms across Europe over the decades following the 'global corporate governance revolution' in the 1990s. Focusing on countries in Europe's four main regions, this volume presents and discusses the net effects of the interplay between the 'global corporate governance revolution' and of its main countervailing forces in Europe.

‘Gugler and Peev have put together an essential collection for corporate governance research in Europe. By documenting changes in ownership structure since the 1990s, the book updates what we know about corporate control in key jurisdictions. Each chapter supplements the empirical results with careful qualitative analysis – based on the critical economic and political theories – to document the factors driving or impeding change.'

Martin Gelter - Fordham University School of Law (New York)

‘As the 21st century got underway, there was much speculation that European corporate governance was being transformed. What has happened in the years since? This volume offers numerous intriguing data-driven insights regarding share ownership patterns.'

Brian R. Cheffins - Professor of Corporate Law, University of Cambridge