Publications

In recent years, the matter of directors' compensation has been the focus of continuous attention worldwide, and in the wake of the recent financial crisis it has become one of the central issues of discussions on promoting the stability of the financial markets.

In accordance with the provisions of the EC Recommendations*, the Italian Government has recently approved Legislative Decree No. 259 dated 30 December 2010, which introduced into our legal system new and more stringent requirements for director compensation policies of listed companies.

The Decree was published in the Gazzetta Ufficiale yesterday 7 February 2011 and will become effective on the fifteenth day following such publication.

This briefing outlines the relevant provisions.

*At the European level, the growing attention to directors' compensation is documented by numerous recent EU initiatives. In 2004, the Commission issued its first Recommendation, fostering an appropriate regime for the remuneration of directors of listed companies and, in 2005, a second Recommendation on the role of non-executive or supervisory directors of listed companies and on the committees of the (supervisory) board. Finally, in 2009, the Commission issued Recommendation 2009/385/EC, which supplements its two prior recommendations.

Download Full Report