Time and place for the trial lecture
24th of March 10:15am-11:00am in Gamle festsal. The title for the trial lecture will be: Vedtektenes betydning for selskapets interesse. Herunder om vedtektene kan benyttes til å utvide eller innskrenke selskapsinteressen.
The trial lecture and the disputation can also be followed by zoom.
Adjudication committee
- Associate Professor Arne Tjaum, University of Oslo (leader)
- Professor Karsten Engsig Sørensen, Aarhus University (1. opponent)
- Associate Professor Hanna Almlöf, Lindköping University (2. opponent)
Chair of defence
- Vice dean Ivar Alvik
Supervisors
- Professor Tore Bråthen
- Professor Margrethe Christoffersen Buskerud
Additional information
What Does It Mean to Act in the Company’s Interest?
In Norwegian company law, the concept of the “company’s interest” is a central legal standard. It is used, among other things, in questions concerning the board’s duties, the limits of shareholders’ decisions, and the assessment of liability. Yet the concept is not defined in the legislation, and its content has only to a limited extent been clarified and systematised in a coherent manner.
The dissertation provides a comprehensive account of what it means to act in the company’s interest and contributes to greater predictability in corporate governance. It is particularly relevant at a time when board responsibility and the role of companies in society are high on the agenda.
Balancing Different Interests
A limited liability company is an independent legal entity with a defined purpose, and its activities are to be conducted with a view to long-term value creation. The board must therefore make concrete trade-offs between different considerations and interests. These may include the interests of shareholders, creditors, employees, and society. The dissertation shows that the company’s interest is a fundamental legal norm for how companies should be governed, and clarifies how the norm should be understood in practice. Decisions must be assessed on the basis of what, in a sound and prudent manner, serves the company as an independent legal entity, within the framework of its purpose and business. The dissertation identifies which interests are included in this assessment and how they should be balanced in different situations.
The Board Decides Within the Framework
A central finding is that the company’s interest functions both as a duty-based norm and as a discretionary norm for the company’s governing bodies. It sets legal boundaries for decisions, while leaving it to the board to carry out the concrete balancing within the framework of sound management. At the same time, the concept creates coherence across central parts of company law and provides a common standard for the board’s decisions, the exercise of shareholder authority, and judicial review.