In 2021, there were not the usual judgments concerning the free movement of companies and the service directive. On the other hand, there were several judgments interpreting secondary law, in particular the rules applicable to listed companies. Several of these cases address procedural aspects of national law, where the Court is focussed on ensuring that the Member States observe the principles of equivalence and effectiveness as well as the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union.
1. C-546/18, FN, GM etc. – imposing criminal sanctions for breaches of takeover regulation
In this judgment from 9 September 2021 the Court of Justice of the European Union (hereinafter ‘the Court’) was asked whether the Austrian setup for imposing sanctions for violation of the mandatory bid duty infringed EU law. According to the system adopted there was a preliminary proceeding that established the facts and next there was another proceeding to decide whether an administrative penalt ...