Cross-Border change of legal form

Predmet obravnave magistrske naloge je čezmejna sprememba pravnoorganizacijske oblike družbe s poudarkom na pravnem institutu čezmejnega preoblikovanja, kot ga po novem ureja pravo Evropske Unije. V prvem delu naloge je zaradi vzporednic in širše slike na kratko predstavljena sprememba pravnoorganizacijske oblike družbe po slovenskem pravu. Ta podvrsta statusnega preoblikovanja družb, imenovana tudi formalno statusno preoblikovanje, temelji na načelu ohranjanja identitete družbe, ki se preoblikuje, kar pomeni, da pri tej statusni spremembi ne pride do prenehanja družbe, ki se preoblikuje, niti ne gre za prenašanje njenih pravic, obveznosti in pravnih razmerji, temveč družba po preoblikovanju ohranja svojo pravno subjektiviteto in obstaja naprej v drugi pravnoorganizacijski obliki in drugem pravnem okviru. Drugi del naloge je namenjen čezmejnim spremembam pravnoorganizacijske oblike družb. Pri tovrstnih operacijah gre za podvrsto statusnega preoblikovanja družbe, pri katerem se družba, ki obstaja v pravnoorganizacijski obliki po pravu določene države (npr. slovenska družba z omejeno odgovornostjo), preoblikuje v družbo s pravnoorganizacijsko obliko po pravu druge države (npr. italijansko delniško družbo). Navedena pravna operacija praviloma vključuje selitev družbe v drugo državo, kar običajno zahteva izbris družbe iz pravnega registra ene države in njen vpis v register druge. Najpomembnejša sprememba za družbo in z njo povezane subjekte je pri tej transakciji ta, da za družbo po tovrstnem preoblikovanju velja pravo države v katero se ta priseli. V magistrski nalogi avtor ugotavlja, da je možnost izvedbe tovrstnih pravnih operacij odvisna od ureditev udeleženih držav (izvorne in ciljne), pri čemer večina držav tovrstnih preoblikovanj (ob ohranitvi identitete družbe, ki se preoblikuje) izrecno ne ureja oz. omogoča. V tretjem delu naloge je obravnavan institut čezmejnega preoblikovanja po določbah Direktive (EU) 2019/2121. Navedeni pravni akt, ki ga bodo morale države članice do 31. 01. 2023 implementirati v svoje nacionalne pravne sisteme, bo med drugim zagotovil določen obseg harmonizacije čezmejnih sprememb pravnoorganizacijske oblike družb znotraj EU. Na njegovi podlagi bodo harmonizirani postopek čezmejne spremembe pravnoorganizacijske oblike ter varstvo subjektov, ki so pri tovrstnih pravnih operacijah lahko prizadeti (upniki, družbeniki in delavci). Vendar pa ureditev čezmejnih sprememb pravnoorganizacijske oblike tudi po implementaciji Direktive (EU) 2019/2121 ne bo popolna. Zakonodajalec EU namreč z njo od držav članic ni zahteval obvezne ureditve možnosti čezmejnega preoblikovanja osebnih družb (ter v pravnoorganizacijsko obliko osebnih družb). Avtor ugotavlja, da so ne glede na navedeno in ne glede na to, ali posamezne članice EU takšna preoblikovanja izrecno urejajo (oz. jih bodo uredile), znotraj EU na podlagi svobode ustanavljanja in sodne prakse Sodišča EU možne tudi čezmejne spremembe pravnoorganizacijske oblike osebnih družb (in v osebne družbe).The subject of this master\u27s thesis is the cross-border change of the legal form of a company with an emphasis on cross-border conversion, as newly regulated by European Union law. Due to the parallels and the broader picture, the first part of the thesis briefly presents the change of the legal form of a company according to the Slovenian law. This subtype of status transformation of companies, also named formal status transformation, is based on the principle of preserving the identity of the company being transformed, which means that this status change does not lead to the dissolution of the company being transformed or the transfer of its rights, obligations and legal relations, instead the company retains its legal subjectivity after the transformation and continues to exist in a different legal organizational form and a different legal framework. The second part of the thesis is dedicated to cross-border changes of the legal form of companies. Such operations are a subtype of status transformation of a company in which a company that exists in a legal form under the law of a certain country (eg. a Slovenian limited liability company) is transformed into a company with a legal form according to the law of another country (eg. an Italian joint stock company). Normaly, the said legal operation involves the relocation of a company to another country, which usually requires the deletion of the company from the legal register of one country and its entry into the register of another country. In this transaction, the most important change for the company and the entities related to it, is that the company becomes the subject to the law of the country to which it immigrates. In the master\u27s thesis, the author finds that the possibility of carrying out such legal operations depends on the arrangements of the participating countries (former and target), with most countries not explicitly regulating or allowing such company transformations (while preserving the identity of the company being transformed). The third part of the thesis deals with the institute of cross-border conversion under the provisions of Directive (EU) 2019/2121. This legal act, which the Member States will have to implement in their national legal systems by 31 January 2023, will, among other things, ensure a certain extent of harmonization of cross-border company legal form change within the EU. On its basis, the procedure for cross-border change of company legal form and protective measures for entities that may be affected in such legal operations (creditors, partners and employees) will be harmonized. However, the regulation of cross-border changes in the company legal form will not be complete even after the implementation of Directive (EU) 2019/2121. Namely, the EU legislator did not require the Member States to regulate the possibility of cross-border transformation of partnerships (and into partnerships). The author notes that regardless of the above and regardless of whether individual EU member states explicitly regulate (or will regulate) such transformations, cross-border legal form changes of partnerships (and into partnerships) are still possible within the EU, based on the freedom of establishment and the case law of Court of justice of the European Union