Koray Çavuolu examines a largely overlooked governance option in German limited liability companies: the board of directors. He refutes the widespread assumption that it is merely a variant of the optional supervisory board and develops an independent understanding in light of SE law.

The German Limited Liability Companies Act (GmbHG) gives the drafters of the articles of association extensive flexibility to structure the internal organization of the company in accordance with their respective needs. One option that has so far received little scholarly attention is the establishment of a board of directors ( Verwaltungsrat ) as an optional corporate body. But what is to be understood by a board of directors, and how is it to be distinguished from a supervisory board? Is there, in practice, any real need for the establishment of such a board of directors? How is the management board to be classified within the legal framework of the GmbH? Koray Çavuolu examines these questions using a methodologically pluralistic approach. He challenges the widespread view that the board of directors is merely a variant of the optional supervisory board and develops an independent understanding of the board of directors of the GmbH in light of SE law-an approach with far-reaching consequences for corporate drafting practice.

Autorentext
Studied law in Munich; First State Examination in 2018; legal clerkship (Rechtsreferendariat) at the Munich Higher Regional Court; Second State Examination in 2020; PhD (Munich) in 2025; attorney-at-law in Munich; legal counsel in Munich.

Inhalt

Einführung
Kapitel I: Vergleich des monistischen mit dem dualistischen System
§ 1 Rechtlicher Vergleich
§ 2 Ökonomischer Vergleich
Kapitel II: Grundlagen zur rechtsökonomischen Gestaltung der Binnenorganisation
§ 1 Entscheidungskriterien für eine effiziente Ausgestaltung der Unternehmensverfassung
§ 2 Rechtstatsächliche Typisierung
Kapitel III: Erforderlichkeit und Geeignetheit des Verwaltungsrats
§ 1 Die internen Kosten der Organisation
§ 2 Erforderlichkeit
§ 3 Geeignetheit
Kapitel IV: Verortung des Verwaltungsrats im GmbHG
§ 1 Der Anwendungsbereich des § 52 GmbHG
§ 2 Einordnung des Verwaltungsrats in den Anwendungsbereich des § 52 GmbHG
Kapitel V: Der Verwaltungsrat unter analoger Anwendung des SE-Rechts
§ 1 Grundlagen zur analogen Anwendbarkeit des SE-Rechts
§ 2 Rechte und Pflichten
§ 3 Organhaftung
§ 4 Binnenrecht
§ 5 Publizität
Schluss