Abstract

The new act of 5.12.2008 amending the Commercial Companies Code and the Financial Instruments Trading Act, which entered into force as of 3.8.2009, introduced a new right to the Commercial Companies Code guaranteeing the possibility to independently convene an extraordinary general meeting and appoint the chairman of that meeting by shareholders representing at least 50% of the share capital or at least 50% of the voting rights in the company (Article 399 § 3 of the KSH). This article offers an analysis of the functioning of that legal act in practice and an attempt to answer the question whether the objective to be served by the act has been attained and whether the act equally protects shareholders of all joint-stock companies, in particular public companies.