| Unit name | International Corporate Finance |
|---|---|
| Unit code | LAWDM0116 |
| Credit points | 30 |
| Level of study | M/7 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 4 (weeks 1-24) |
| Unit director | Dr. Sergakis |
| Open unit status | Not open |
| Pre-requisites |
None |
| Co-requisites |
None |
| School/department | University of Bristol Law School |
| Faculty | Faculty of Social Sciences and Law |
This unit will explore the legal rules which govern the procedures followed by companies when they want to raise funds. It will be divided into two major parts: a) equity financing: the raising of capital following private rules (minimum capital requirements, capital variations, the protection of shareholder rights when raising capital, the issuance of shares, financial assistance, etc.) and the raising of capital through the markets (IPOs, prospectus disclosure, ongoing disclosure of listed companies, market abuse, etc.) and b) debt financing: debentures, fixed and floating charges, charges of book debts, specialised forms of finance such as project finance and trade finance, security, bonds, insolvency issues and priority for the payment, pari passu clauses, registration requirements, etc.
Through the examination of both private and public sources of financing, this module offers a fruitful combination of company law and securities regulation study, under both a national and international perspective. Applicable EU law will also be examined, and broader issues regarding the function of international capital markets will be discussed.
Unit aims
- Enable students to identify various legal concepts and principles examined throughout the subject and designed to raise capital for companies and protect other related market actors affected by these kinds of strategies. - Enable students to apply theories and legal rules of corporate finance to practical situations. - Research sources of law and academic texts to identify the reasoning behind principles of corporate finance, as well as their impact on various legal provisions. - Enable students to confidently handle, analyse, summarise and apply the creation of the above principles.Seminars
Seminar 1: Minimum capital requirements, capital variations, protection of shareholder rights Seminar 2: Share buy-back schemes and redeemable shares Seminar 3: Financial assistance Seminar 4: IPOs Seminar 5: Ongoing disclosure Seminar 6: Market abuse (insider dealing etc) Seminar 7: Debentures, fixed and floating charges, charges of book debts Seminar 8: Project finance and trade finance Seminar 9: Security and corporate bonds Seminar 10: Insolvency issues and priority for the payment, pari passu clauses Seminar 11: Seminar Revision
On the completion of this unit, students will be able to demonstrate:
- thorough knowledge and systematic understanding of various corporate finance procedures and techniques for raising capital - understanding of legal issues arising in the framework of the protection of lenders and borrowers - critical assessment of concepts related to corporate finance arguing from competing perspectives and paying particular attention to contemporary issues - critical appreciation of the legal procedures related to corporate finance strategies - ability to deal with practical issues in the area of corporate finance, to interpret, critically evaluate and re-express these in given, previously unseen, practical situations with appropriate critical comment11 x seminars = 22 hrs 20 x lectures = 20 hrs
Summative assessment 3-hour unseen written examination
Formative assessment 1 x 1500 essay in term 1 and 1 optional 1500 essay in term 2
Gower and Davies, Principles of Modern Company Law (Sweet & Maxwell, 9th ed., 2012).
Eilis Ferran, Principles of Corporate Finance Law (Oxford, OUP, 2008).
Louise Gullifer and Jennifer Payne, Corporate Finance Law: Principles and Policy (Oxford, Hart Publishing, 2011).
John Lowry and Arad Reisberg, Pettet's Company Law: Company Law and Corporate Finance (Longman, 4th Edition, 2012).
Dan Prentice, Arad Reisberg (ed.) Corporate Finance Law in the UK and EU (Oxford, OUP, 2011).
