Peter Forstmoser, Wirtschaftsrecht im Wandel. Erfahrungen aus vier Jahrzehnten, SJZ 104 (2008), Nr. 6, S. 133 ff.
Forstmoser Peter – Wirtschaftsrecht im Wandel
Background
This essay is the written and amended version of Peter Forstmoser’s farewell lecture at the University of Zurich, UZH. It elaborates on pioneering depictions of and thoughts on economic law. Peter Forstmoser explores three main areas depicting economic law: “Economy and State”, “Economy and (Civil) Society” and “the Business Enterprise and its Stakeholder”. Forstmoser concludes with the observation that earlier developed broader issues of economics have essentially remained the same.
Summary
This essay concerns Prof. Dr. Peter Forstmoser’s farewell lecture at the University of Zurich.
Prof. Forstmoser’s essay is split into three sections: “Economy and State”, “Economy and (Civil) Society” and “the Business Enterprise and its Stakeholder”. He concludes with remarks on the changes of opinions, the constancy of the problems and the thematic of teaching.
The section “Economy and State” places an emphasis on the historical development of the legislation in Switzerland. Prof. Forstmoser focuses, in particular, on the change of the pace of legislation. Thereafter, in the next topic, he deals with questions related to publicly traded companies. In reporting his observations, he also indicates socio-political problems. In the final section of his three part essay on economic law, he elaborates on the conflicting goals between the company and its stakeholders. Prof. Forstmoser relativizes this conflict and concludes that the individual goals of the parties involved are actually convergences. These goals should serve as guidelines for long-term company interests.
Finally, Prof. Forstmoser summarizes his remarks and concludes that despite changes of opinions, the larger issues of economic law have remained unchanged.
The presentation concludes with some remarks about teaching. Here, Prof. Forstmoser refers to his profession as a lecturer. He describes the changes that have occurred over the last four decades and describes his own experiences in connection therewith.