The Defensive Measures in Case of Takeover Bids: The Italian Perspective

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to analyze the possible defenses that the public companies can take in the event of threat of a takeover by another company. The thesis is dedicated expressly to the Italian law, so that the subjective limit of these pages is represented by the Italian companies, even if listed in the market of another Member State of the European Union. If the main focus is the Italian legislation about the takeovers (in Italian offerte pubbliche di acquisto, or opa), we will dedicate our attention also to the legal framework of the topic in the European Law, mainly according to the XIII Directive, and we will not forget the importance of the comparative approach to the matter of the takeovers.

Keywords: company law, takeover, Italy