The European Union is preparing for an examination of the “one share, one vote” principle—an idea not exactly sacrosanct in some European countries, and one already raising the ire of some companies fearful that good governance might clash with protectionist interests.
Corporate boards in the EU employ a wide range of poison pills and similar shareholder-rights plans to prevent takeovers, particularly cross-border mergers where questions of preserving national pride might arise. Now, however, the European Commission has ordered a formal study on the practicality of making one-share-one-vote governance the law of the land.
