Corporate Governance and the Liability of Credit Institutions – Lessons from the Financial Crisis
Deutsche Bundesbank, Hamburg, 16.11.2010, 17:00
Under the title: "Corporate Governance and the Liability of Credit Institutions – Lessons from the Financial Crisis", a lecture program jointly sponsored by the Deutsche Bundesbank, Hamburg, the Universtity of Hamburg and the MPI for Private Law will be held on Tuesday, 16 November 2010.The financial crisis has generated numerous laws and reform proposals at the national, European and international levels, including proposals for tightening the captial provisions of the Basel Accords, additional regulation of trading books, short sales and rating agencies, a European oversight agency and a general bank levy. In this same sweep of policy efforts, the German parliament enacted a restructuring act. Corporate governance, by contrast, as it relates to credit institutions and their potential liability has generally been paid less attention - outside of rules on compensation. It is this void which the current lecture program will address with the presentations of Professor Lutter, University of Bonn, ("Haftungsprobleme bei Kreditinstituten und ihrer Leitung nach der Krise") and Professor Snower, President of the Kiel Institute for the World Economy("Struktur- und Prozessüberlegungen zur Krisenprävention im Bankgewerbe" as well as the subsequent panel discussion.
To a large degree it has been overlooked that the asymmetric division of opportunities and risks within the financial sector was a significant cause of the financial crisis. The crisis is by no means evidence of the failure of our market-economy structure. Rather, it can be traced to the inoperability of a key steering mechanism, namely the balance dictated by potential gains and losses. One possible approach to building trust and avoiding further crises could be enhanced personal liability for the board and management personnel of credit institutions (as well as possibly decision-makers operating at a removed level). Some have even contemplated a sort of product liability for toxic financial products. As regards tortious liability, a resulting question is how the behavioural and organisational duties of credit institutions are to be appropriately raised and fine-tuned. How claims are to be enforced is also a question of great practical significance. One can envision direct liability vis-a-vis third-parties which could be enforced by the depositors and investors themselves. Ultimately, it is not merely enhanced responsibility and ethics which are needed in the financial sector. Sanctions for malpractice must also be considered.
Welcome
Adelheid Sailer-Schuster
Deutsche Bundesbank Hamburg
Prof. Dr. Dieter Lenzen
University of Hamburg
Prof. Dr.Dr. Dr. h.c. mult. Klaus J. Hopt
Max Planck Institute for Comparative and International Private Law
Lectures
Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. mult. Marcus Lutter
Center for European Economic Law, University of Bonn
"Haftungsprobleme bei Kreditinstituten und ihrer Leitung
nach der Krise"
Prof. Dennis Snower, Ph.D.
Kiel Institute for the World Economy
"Überlegungen zur Krisenprävention im Bankgewerbe"
Panel Discussion
Prof. Dr. Dr. Dr. h.c. mult. Klaus J. Hopt (Moderation)
Max Planck Institute for Comparative and International Private Law
Prof. Dr. Friedhelm Hengsbach
formerly of the Nell-Breuning-Institut für Wirtschafts- und Gesellschaftsethik Frankfurt
Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. mult. Marcus Lutter
Center for European Economic Law, University of Bonn
Prof. Dr. Dirk Jens Nonnenmacher
HSH Nordbank AG
Prof. Dennis Snower, Ph.D.
Kiel Institute for the World Economy
Prof. Dr. Rolf von Lüde
University of Hamburg
The lecture programme is not open to the public
Date of publication: 16.11.2010
Language
German