To what extent is EU company law harmonized? This article first makes the point that little progress has been made in the direction of company law uniformity within the EU. It then argues that, even leaving aside the question of whether it would be desirable to have a uniform EU company law, that outcome is simply impossible to achieve, due to interest group resistance and the variety in national meta-rules. Yet it concludes that, in a narrow meaning, European company laws have indeed been harmonized: European Member States company laws fit together, which may well be what harmonization, not only etymologically, is all about.

This study is an analytical account of the phenomenon of conflicts of rights, tailored to the context of international human rights law. It addresses the nature of conflicts of rights, the relationship between conflicts of rights and the extent and scope of the rights catalogue and the methods used to resolve conflicts. It is structured around the notion of a meta-rule. It argues that a conflict of rights can only be resolved ‘legally’ through the application of a rule that guides the decision maker to a solution. The study addresses the suitability and justification of such rules.