ABSTRACT

In this chapter I will focus on the contribution of arbitrazh courts to joint-stock societies law. Unlike labour law, it is a relatively recent phenomenon within the Russian legal system. The basic relevant legislation includes the 1995 Federal Law ‘On Joint-Stock Societies’ (FLJSS), as repeatedly amended afterwards, the most important and massive amendments being those adopted on 7 August 2001,1 the 1996 Federal Law ‘On Securities Market’ (as amended) and, of course, the Civil Code. Besides, subordinate legal acts issued by the Federal Securities Commission are also of importance. In general, the regulation on joint-stock societies is complex and sometimes highly ‘technical’. Although the details cannot be described here,2 it is important to note that there are open and closed joint-stock societies, the basic distinction being the way in which their stocks are distributed and disposed of. The stocks of the open joint-stock society are subject to open subscription and the stockholders may dispose of them in the way they want to, whereas the number of stockholders of a closed society can not exceed 50 and they have a preferential right to acquire the stocks from their fellow stockholder if they are put up for sale. Besides, the open joint-stock societies should publish annual book-keeping and financial reports, which is not a duty for the closed ones.