ARTICLE
24 April 2015

Gender Quota Of At Least 30% On Listed Corporations’ Supervisory Boards

AO
A&O Shearman

Contributor

A&O Shearman was formed in 2024 via the merger of two historic firms, Allen & Overy and Shearman & Sterling. With nearly 4,000 lawyers globally, we are equally fluent in English law, U.S. law and the laws of the world’s most dynamic markets. This combination creates a new kind of law firm, one built to achieve unparalleled outcomes for our clients on their most complex, multijurisdictional matters – everywhere in the world. A firm that advises at the forefront of the forces changing the current of global business and that is unrivalled in its global strength. Our clients benefit from the collective experience of teams who work with many of the world’s most influential companies and institutions, and have a history of precedent-setting innovations. Together our lawyers advise more than a third of NYSE-listed businesses, a fifth of the NASDAQ and a notable proportion of the London Stock Exchange, the Euronext, Euronext Paris and the Tokyo and Hong Kong Stock Exchanges.
On 6 March 2015, the German Parliament approved a compulsory gender quota of at least 30% in supervisory boards of certain types of corporations, which was also approved by the German Federal Council on 27 March 2015.
Germany Corporate/Commercial Law

On 6 March 2015, the German Parliament approved a compulsory gender quota of at least 30% in supervisory boards of certain types of corporations, which was also approved by the German Federal Council on 27 March 2015. The nationwide and sector-independent quota applies for all corporations that are (i) listed on the stock exchange and (ii) co-determined on the basis of parity (i.e. employ more than 2,000 employees). From 1 January 2016, these types of corporations need to allocate at least 30% of their supervisory seats to the underrepresented gender.

In contrast to the ministerial draft bill, on which we reported in our October 2014 newsletter, the compulsory quota now applies to the supervisory board as a whole. Only in the event of a protest are stakeholders and employee representatives obliged to fulfill the quota separately. Furthermore, corporations not meeting the quota shall be required to leave the respective seats vacant which may bear the risk of invalid resolutions if the corresponding votes are decisive. The empty seats must be staffed with a person of the underrepresented gender in a court proceeding.

In addition, listed corporations as well as co-determined corporations (i.e. corporations with more than 500 employees) shall define quota targets as from 30 September 2015. The self-imposed quotas shall not fall below the status quo or below 30% if this has been achieved already. Such quotas will be binding on corporations' supervisory boards and management boards as well as to the first and second management levels and are to be achieved by 30 June 2017. There will be no further consequences if companies fail to achieve such self-imposed quotas. However, the target quotas and the level of achievement must be publically announced.

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.

Mondaq uses cookies on this website. By using our website you agree to our use of cookies as set out in our Privacy Policy.

Learn More