Succession of Equity Interest Rights: The Experience of Russia and France

The paper is dedicated to the comparison of the inheritance of corporate rights in the legal systems of Russia and France. During the research the legislative provisions of the Russian and French legislation that regulate the inheritance of stakes in charter capital of limited liability company (LLC) and shares in the authorized capital of joint-stock company were examined. Attention is drawn to the differences in the legal provisions of Russian and French legislation that stipulate the procedure of transfer of equity interest in the authorized capital of a limited liability company existing between French and Russian law. Besides, attention was paid to the institution of trust management of stakes in the authorized capital of a limited liability company under Russian and French law. A special attention is paid to the scrutiny of the inheritance of shares in the authorized capital of the joint-stock company from the perspective of Russian and French legislation. The author concludes that consent to the transition of corporate rights may be provided by the charter of the LLC. In joint-stock company, shares are transferred to heirs without the consent of other shareholders. In the event of inheritance of shares, neither the Russian legislator nor the French stipulate provisions under which consent may be required to transfer shares to the heirs.