Project content
Steward ownership as an international research topic
The concept of steward ownership is not a national phenomenon, but a type of responsible corporate governance that is already practised internationally in numerous companies. The concrete forms of implementation within different legal systems are correspondingly diverse. Although steward ownership has not yet been enshrined in law as an independent legal form in any legal system, there are already numerous legal structures in place to enable entrepreneurs to utilise this form of corporate governance. The aim of the Steward Ownership Network (StONe) is to bring together leading international academics in this field in order to advance research worldwide. With the help of comparative legal methods and empirical research, the aim is to gain insights that go beyond individual national legal systems. To this end, StONe organises international conferences and research projects.
- Concept and implementation of steward ownership in Germany
The core of the concept behind companies with tied assets is asset retention: People who control these companies with their voting rights should not have access to the profits generated in the company in order to base their decisions on the good of the company and not on hopes of personally collecting profits. To a certain extent, the shareholders should be trustees, or "stewards", who are connected to the company. These stewards pass on their position at the end of their entrepreneurial involvement. The legal implementation of the concept is currently possible in various forms in Germany, with foundations or specially organised limited liability companies. It requires the separation of voting rights and profit participation rights, but does not fundamentally exclude the latter. At the same time, shareholders have full freedom to organise the company. They can shut it down, sell it and reorganise it. Although they do not receive the profits or proceeds from the sale or liquidation, they can receive market-based remuneration for their activities.