Abstract
This chapter introduces the purpose, scope and content of the edited volume Nordic Company Law: Broadening the Horizon (2023). Nordic company law is deeply integrated in European company law. Yet Nordic company law retains its own essence.
We introduce in our chapter the core Nordic company law issues of control, purpose and profit in companies ranging from micro enterprises to listed. The chapter outlines how the volume goes beyond the traditional scope of Nordic company law by also encompassing corporate groups, enterprise foundations, cooperatives, and conceptualising, for the first time, Sámi company law.
The chapter presents the topical company law and corporate governance themes of the volume. Questions discussed include: What will digitalisation mean for corporate governance? What role for company law in the transformation to sustainability? Does state control of multinational listed enterprises entail good corporate governance?
We thereby position our volume within the overarching challenges of our time, including that of ensuring the contribution of business to a more sustainable present and a sustainable future. We also engage with the rudimentary expressions of such broader societal issues in company law itself, such as the inclusion of gender and labour issues, the increase of sustainability reporting requirements, and the reawakening of the interest in corporate purpose.
Preprint available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=4593136 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.4593136