Bibliographie sélective OHADA

Tesis doctoral (Lectura 07/02/2013). Director: Francisco José Martínez López (Universidad de Granada). Tribunal: Martínez López, Francisco José, Univ. de Huelva, presidente; Padilla Meléndez, Antonio (secretario); Ortigueira Sánchez, Manuel (vocal); Luna Huertas, Paula (vocal); García Ordaz, María Mercedes (vocal). Se puede afirmar que la historia de las relaciones entre los individuos y las organizaciones se divide en dos, antes y después de la aparición de Internet, la penetración de los PC y de la banda ancha. En el campo organizacional, las Tecnologías de la Información y las Comunicaciones (TIC), se refieren al amplio espectro de tecnologías de base de los Sistemas de Información, y que se constituye en un importante recurso, que facilita la continua adaptación del Sistema de Información a los cambios internos y del entorno. La aplicación de los sistemas de información a las actividades organizacionales, caso concreto que nos interesa, el marketing, se constituye en una herramienta para que la empresa se mantenga competitiva en el mercado. Las relaciones de intercambio desarrolladas en los mercados electrónicos posibilitan la comunicación bidireccional entre las partes y entre cada una de ellas y el propio medio, exigiendo a las organizaciones implementar un marketing interactivo en términos de producto, precio, distribución y comunicación, en el que consumidor dirija el proceso de intercambio. El desarrollo del comercio en los mercados electrónicos y las aplicaciones de los sistemas de información al marketing, han tomado características del comercio tradicional y han sido adaptadas al electrónico, caso específico la adaptación que han realizado una gran cantidad de empresas comerciales en la Web a las recomendaciones a sus usuarios a través de los sistemas de recomendación (RS), entendidos como sistemas que realizan recomendaciones de productos que están buscando, o basadas en sus gustos o preferencias. Este es tema central de este trabajo, pero no enfocado a su parte técnica, sino a la comprensión de los factores que explican el comportamiento online de los consumidores frente a los RS de determinada website (WS), por lo que se propone un modelo teórico, sustentado por once hipótesis principales y otras subordinadas, la cuales son el resultado de la integración reflexiva de la Teoría de la Acción Razonada, de la adaptación Trust-TAM y de la Teoría del Comportamiento Planeado. Del análisis y corroboración del modelo, se puede concluir que el proceso de adopción del sistema de recomendación de cierto website se conforma sobre la base que a) el usuario percibe la opinión de otros con respecto al uso de los sistemas de recomendación en general y del particular de un determinado website; b) el grado de confianza que le merece al consumidor la interacción e información proporcionada por el sistema de recomendación; c) la percepción de utilidad de uso del sistema de recomendación que tiene su usuario; y d)la actitud del individuo hacia el sistema de recomendación de un website particular.

L'arbitrage est devenu le mécanisme de règlement des différends dans les contrats internationaux. L'arbitrage international offre aux parties non seulement la possibilité d’éviter les juridictions étatiques, mais facilite également l'exécution internationale des sentences arbitrales. Dans ce cadre, la Convention de New York de 1958 sur la reconnaissance et l’exécution des sentences arbitrales étrangères constitue sans aucun doute le traité le plus important dans le domaine de l'arbitrage international, et a connu un succès remarquable au cours de sa ratification par 147 États. Cette étude apporte une analyse approfondie sur la mise en application et l’interprétation par les différentes juridictions des dispositions prévues par cette Convention, surtout en matière de reconnaissance et d’exécution des sentences arbitrales étrangères. Arbitration has become the dispute resolution mechanism in international contracts. International arbitration does not only offer to the parties the possibility of avoiding the States jurisdictions, it also facilitates the international enforceability of arbitral awards. In this respect, the New York Convention of 1958 on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards constitutes without a doubt the single most important treaty in the field of international arbitration, and has enjoyed remarkable success through its ratification by 147 States. This study presents a thorough analysis of the application and interpretation of the provisions, provided by the Convention, by different jurisdictions especially in the area of the recognition and enforcement of foreign arbitral awards.

Le contrat de franchise est un contrat d'adhésion qui repose sur la réitération du succès commercial du franchiseur, et qui organise une coopération entre des entreprises indépendantes, D'une part, celle du franchiseur, qui a mis au point et expérimenté un concept substantiel, identifié et réitérable, à même de générer un flux d'activité économique. D'autre part, celle du franchisé, qui adhère au réseau du premier. Il en devient un des maillons, de sorte qu’il bénéficie notamment du savoir-faire. Celui-ci est reconnu comme étant un élément déterminant du contrat de franchise, et qui doit être entendu comme un ensemble secret, substantiel et identifié d’informations pratiques non brevetées, résultant de l'expérience du franchiseur, et testées par celui-ci. Ainsi, dans le cadre d’un contrat de franchise, le franchiseur doit transmettre au franchisé son savoir-faire, qui doit être gardé secret. Le «secret» s’entend du fait que le savoir-faire est difficilement accessible, et sa transmission par le franchiseur conférant au franchisé un avantage concurrentiel significatif. Cet avantage doit se concrétiser par la réussite économique du franchisé, dès lors qu’il respecte les consignes qui lui ont été transmises ; à défaut, sa responsabilité contractuelle pourra être engagée, et pourrait conduire dans certains cas, à l’extinction du contrat de franchise.

The thesis analyses the concept ‘fairness’ in consumer contracts regulated by the Consumer Protection Act 68 of 2008, mainly from the perspective of a freedom and fairness orientation. It discusses the evolution of ‘fairness’ as background to a more detailed discussion of the classification of fairness into substantive and procedural fairness. The thesis examines dimensions of fairness, factors which play a role in the determination of fairness, and fairness- oriented approaches in an attempt to formulate a framework for fairness in consumer contracts. The main aspects that should be taken into account to justify a finding of fairness, or to determine whether a contract is fair, are identified. This analysis addresses, too, the extent to which the fairness provisions of the Consumer Protection Act are appropriate (with reference to the law of South Africa, Europe, and England).

Quelles sont les conséquences juridiques et fiscales des opérations de fusions acquisitions bancaires au Maroc ? Sur le plan juridique, les opérations de fusion des banques sont régies, au même titre que les sociétés, quelques soient leur forme et leur objet, par deux textes fondamentaux : le Dahir des Obligations et des Contrats (D.O.C) et la loi sur les sociétés anonymes qui règlement les procédures d’élaboration du projet de fusion et de réalisation définitive de la fusion des sociétés concernées. En effet, la loi sur la liberté des prix et de la concurrence intervient, par le biais du Conseil National de la Concurrence, pour ne pas remettre en cause le principe de libre concurrence. Sur le plan fiscal, les fusions obéissent à deux régimes, le régime de droit commun et le régime de faveur, dont les conséquences fiscales sont très différentes. Pour le régime de droit commun, la fusion est une cession de sociétés de fin d’exercice. Quant au régime de faveur, la fusion est assimilée à la prolongation de l’activité au profit de la société absorbante. Dans ce cas, la plus-value réalisée par la société absorbée n’est pas immédiatement taxée en son nom mais est différée, dans le temps, est imposée au nom de la société absorbante. Pour évaluer l’impact des deux régimes de fusion, la recherche s’est appuyée sur deux cas : La fusion BCP-SMDC qui a été réalisée sous le régime de droit commun et celle de la BCM-WAFABANK qui a été effectuée sous le régime de faveur.

Véritablement prospective, la technique est bien souvent à l'origine d'évolutions substantielles du droit. En d'autres termes, elle impacte notre environnement sociétal. Les restrictions opérées par le droit limitent les dommages moraux ou physiques résultant de l'utilisation d'avancées techniques. La conception d'une application innovante, mais également son utilisation voire sa commercialisation doivent prendre acte des normes ressortant des différentes branches de droit. En tant qu'élément structurant la société, le droit impacte ainsi la technique et ses applications. Afin de prévenir ou, le cas échéant, d'agir en vue de contrer les effets néfastes d'un événement de mer, il importe d'améliorer la surveillance et la traçabilité des navires, de connaître les risques afin de prévenir les dangers. Le développement des techniques en ce sens doit donc permettre une meilleure adaptabilité des systèmes en place. Les outils techniques peuvent permettre de pallier les difficultés inhérentes à la disparité des espaces du risque et de la menace en mer. Quand bien même le recours aux innovations techniques revêt un avantage significatif au plan de l'efficacité, la création, la commercialisation et l'usage de celles-ci doivent observer de nombreuses normes juridiques protectrice des intérêts individuels. Réglementant l'utilisation de ses applications, le droit humanise la technique et pose les limites à une interprétation extensive de faits. Il se pose ainsi en garde-fou, prévenant des prises de décisions opérationnelles inadaptées ou contraires aux droits fondamentaux. Truly prospective technique is often at the roots of substantial changes to the law. It impacts on our social environment using legal restrictions to limit physical and moral damages by utilising the advanced technical process. The implementation of a new application, its use and commercialisation, should observe legal norms respecting the numerous and varied arms of law. As one of the structuring elements of society, law is impacted by technique and its application. Enhancing maritime surveillance and tracking vessels is now a priority to prevent and act against harmful damages resulting from maritime incidents. Technical developments lead to better adaptability of systems. It should also surmount the difficulties rising from the disparity of the threats and risk zones. It must be noted that technical innovations present significant advantages in terms of efficiency. The creation, commercialisation and use of any new systems must observe the various legal norms that protect the individual's rights. The law humanizes technique because it limits any misinterpretation of the factual elements and puts in place a necessary safeguard by preventing operational decisions that might violate fundamental rights.

Enfant terrible du droit des contrats, le contrat de franchise entretient des rapports tumultueux avec le droit de la concurrence. L'effet cumulatif induit par la franchise peut faire craindre une domination du marché et une dépendance des franchisés, comme des partenaires du réseau. Ces effets anticoncurrentiels sont cependant contrebalancés par les effets positifs de ce mode d'organisation sur la concurrence. En effet, la mise en œuvre d'un savoir-faire éprouvé transforme les franchisés en meilleurs compétiteurs sur le marché, leur permettant de développer une concurrence plus efficace. L'approche du contrat de franchise par le droit de la concurrence n'est est pas moins empreinte de vigilance. Le droit de la concurrence s'attache à minimiser l'influence de la franchise dans les relations entre les parties au contrat. Ainsi, tant le droit des concentrations que le droit des ententes visent à éliminer toute influence excessive du franchiseur sur la conduite des affaires du franchisé. Dans les rapports entre les tiers e le réseau, le droit de la concurrence peine cependant à donner une pleine consistance juridique à ce dernier, notamment s'agissant du problème de la revente parallèle. Le réseau n'est finalement pris en considération par le droit de la concurrence que pour en juguler l'impact sur les tiers.

The aim of this thesis is to examine several issues that banks confront in emerging and less developed economies such as SME financing and bank governance mechanisms. We first provide an overview of the level of bank SME financing in an economy where banks are mandated by law to lend to SMEs. We find large banks, foreign-owned, and well-managed ones to have low small firm financing exposures. Using a newly-gathered survey data of Philippine banks, we find that all banks perceive the SME market to be profitable. However, banks lend less to SMEs because of their opacity and that lending technologies are largely underdeveloped to serve small firms. Moreover, our results show that credit scoring and factoring are the arms-length lending technologies that are most suited to small firm lending. Examining the impact of income diversification on profitability on Philippine commercial banks, we find smaller banks, foreign banks and banks that lend less to SMEs to derive larger gains from a shift towards non-interest income. Investigating the effects of different governance mechanisms on bank risk taking in an economy where foreign ownership restrictions exist, our results indicate that minority foreign owners have a positive impact on bank performance, particularly, at lower levels of control manifested by dominant domestic shareholders. We also tackle the impact of ownership concentration on bank risk in less developed economies using an institutional approach. The results show that an increase in ownership concentration is associated with higher risk but better quality of institutions mitigates the negative impact of ownership concentration, notably in reducing credit risk. L'objectif de cette thèse est d’examiner les problèmes des banques dans les pays émergents et moins développés, tel que le financement des PME et les mécanismes de gouvernance bancaire. Nous étudions l’état de financement bancaire des PME dans un pays où les banques sont obligées d’allouer une part de leurs prêts aux PME. Nous trouvons que les grandes banques et les banques étrangères allouent moins de crédits aux PME. En utilisant un sondage que nous avons réalisé auprès des banques philippines, nos résultats montrent que le secteur des PME est perçu comme un marché rentable. Les banques sont contraintes à prêter aux petites entreprises à cause de l’opacité de ces PME. Le credit scoring et le factoring sont les techniques de financement les plus adaptées pour financer les petites entreprises. En examinant l’impact de la diversification du revenu sur la rentabilité des banques commerciales, nous trouvons que les banques étrangères et les petites banques bénéficient de l’augmentation des revenus hors intérêts. Nous testons l’impact des actionnaires étrangers minoritaires sur le risque bancaire dans un pays où les actions détenues par les étrangers sont limitées. Nous trouvons que les banques domestiques peuvent diminuer leurs créances douteuses lorsque le droit de vote des actionnaires minoritaires étrangers augmente. L’étude de la structure actionnariale des banques dans les pays moins développés montre qu’une augmentation de la concentration de la structure actionnariale est associée à un niveau de risque plus élevé. Toutefois, de meilleures institutions peuvent atténuer l’impact de la concentration de la structure actionnariale en réduisant le risque de crédit.

Cette thèse a pour objet de déterminer à quelles conditions l’arbitre international, saisi d’un litige relatif à un contrat de joint venture sino-étrangère, est susceptible d’apporter une solution aux cocontractants et une contribution à la construction du droit de l’arbitrage des investissements étrangers en Chine. L’examen des conditions d’accès à l’arbitrage et de la détermination et de la mise en oeuvre, par l’arbitre international, des règles de droit permettra de cerner les limites du caractère véritablement international de l’arbitrage auquel est soumis le contrat de joint venture sino-étrangère. La limitation de l’autonomie des parties en droit chinois de l’arbitrage et en droit international privé chinois impose des contraintes à l’arbitre international, siégeant en Chine ou à l’étranger tant pour apprécier la validité de la clause compromissoire et l’existence et l’étendue ratione personae et ratione materiae du consentement à l’arbitrage, que pour déterminer et appliquer les règles de droit auxquelles est soumis le litige. L’examen des solutions apportées par l’arbitre international permettra d’apprécier son apport substantiel à la clarification des conditions de formation du contrat de joint venture sino-étrangère, qu’il s’agisse des conditions de fond, tirées de la qualification des parties et de l’existence et de la sincérité de leur consentement au contrat de joint venture, que des conditions de forme, tirées de l’approbation des contrats d’investissement. Cet apport est confirmé en matière d’obligations des parties, par la reconnaissance et la diversification des obligations pécuniaires, de participation et de coopération auxquelles sont tenus les associés de l’entreprise commune

Post-independent Cameroon has grappled with the problem of systemic violation of civil and political rights (CPR) despite a transition from single party dictatorship to multiparty democracy in the 1990s. Various legislative measures including the adoption of a supposedly ‘rights friendly’ constitution in 1996 have done little to ameliorate that problem. This thesis adopts a concept of constitutionalism, based on contemporary international standards, to analyse the problem of CPR violations from the perspective of the constitutional arrangements in Cameroon. It examines the system of separation of powers, the method of securing judicial independence and the mechanisms for judicial review. The argument is made that the problem can be attributed in part to the predominant influence of the French civil law system in Cameroon’s bijural legal system. Although for historical reasons, Cameroon operates both the English common law and the French civil law, constitutional developments have continued to be influenced by the latter which lends itself to practices that are not sufficiently supportive of constitutionalism as defined herein. The thesis, however, goes further to explore how the constitutional system could be reinforced to provide a more conducive framework for the protection and enhancement of CPR. Drawing on two strands of arguments, one highlighting features of the common law system that can be more supportive of constitutionalism and the other which highlights the value of indigenous antecedents of constitutionalism, the thesis proposes the development of a contextual model which is more reflective of Cameroon’s peculiar legal and socio-political circumstances. It proposes what is described as an Optimal Integrative Approach (OIA) as a framework for developing a contextual model, more conducive for the protection and enhancement of CPR in Cameroon.

Esta investigación tiene como objetivo determinar la conveniencia de la implementación y el fomento del comercio electrónico en Guinea-Bissau, valorar su viabilidad, identificar los factores que condicionarán esta implantación y proponer un marco regulador adecuado que genere la confianza de los consumidores y proveedores de bienes y servicios. Para acometer este estudio se realiza un extenso análisis doctrinal, jurisprudencial y legal basado sobre todo en el ordenamiento jurídico español y en el derecho comunitario, que nos permitirá proponer un modelo adecuado para Guinea-Bissau. El resultado principal del trabajo es un análisis de la situación jurídica, económica y social en Guinea-Bissau a los efectos de la implantación del comercio electrónico que requiere a su vez el fomento de medios de pago electrónicos, en particular, dadas las condiciones del país y las características comerciales y sociales, de las tarjetas de crédito. De este modo, la investigación pretende concluir con la propuesta de un conjunto de medidas basadas sobre todo en la formulación de disposiciones jurídicas que contribuyan al desarrollo de la sociedad de la información y del comercio electrónico seguro. Además, se propone la reforma del Código Civil y de la Constitución del país, con el objetivo de que se regulen adecuadamente los aspectos relacionados con las nuevas tecnologías de la información y la comunicación y de brindar mayor seguridad jurídica a los entes intervinientes en las operativas de pago mediante tarjeta de crédito en el comercio electrónico. Palabras claves: autenticación y seguridad; medios de pago electrónico; tarjeta de crédito; confianza de consumidores y usuarios; riesgo; uso fraudulento; responsabilidad; comercio electrónico; obligaciones.

The use of temporary employment services as a means to achieve flexibility in die labour market led to various complications due to a lack of proper regulation. The atypical formation of the triangular employment relationship, limited rights and less favourable employment conditions of the temporary employees, multiple authority figures and their liabilities under various circumstances and the impact thereof on such employee’ collective bargaining rights caused legal uncertainty in the absence of sufficient legislation to govern it. Temporary employment agencies developed certain methods in order to evade the restrictive labour legislation and employer duties imposed on them, namely by making use of automatic termination clauses (resolutive conditions) and by categorising the temporary employee as an independent contractor. Last mentioned would effectively exclude the temporary employee from labour legislation and the protection it provides. In reaction to abovementioned problems, trade unions have been objecting to the use of temporary employment agencies and went as far as demanding the total ban thereof. This raised the question in the South African Government whether said agencies should indeed be banned. The other option is a less restrictive approach and entails the attempt to regulate these agencies by amending the current labour legislation in order to accommodate temporary employment services. In light of the fact that various proposals to amend the current South African labour legislation (especially with regard to temporary employment services) have been published in the Government Gazette, it can be deduced that the social partners ultimately chose to regulate temporary employment agencies rather than ban them altogether. From an early stage the International Labour Organisation (ILO) provided rules and regulations for the management of employment agencies in general by way of conventions and recommendations. In 1997, in order to give effect to the labour standards identified by it, the ILO brought the Private Employment Agencies Convention into existence. This document could be applied to all temporary employment agencies on an international level. This document provides for administrative regulations, the duties of the agency and the client as well as the rights of the temporary employees concerned. The ILO recommends that all of its member states incorporate the principles contained within this document in their own legislation. Temporary employment services are also used in other legal systems. For purposes of this study, the English law (United Kingdom (UK)) and the Namibian law will be scrutinised. Similar issues to those recognised in the South African law have been identified in these countries. However, each has approached said problems in different ways. The Namibian Government banned the conducting and provision of these services by way of legislation in 2007. The constitutionality of the ban has however been questioned by the Supreme Court of Namibia, after which it had been found to infringe upon the fundamental freedom to carry on any business, trade or occupation. The ban was struck down as unconstitutional. The Namibian Government has since promulgated new legislation in which it removed the ban and replaced it with numerous amendments providing for the regulation of temporary employment services. Since 1973 the UK has been promulgating various instruments for the thorough regulation of temporary employment agencies. These instruments provide for the management of temporary employment agencies and the rights of the employees involved. The relevant legislative instruments have been updated regularly with the purpose of ensuring that the needs of all the parties concerned are met. The UK, as a member state of the European Union (EU), (which has also been providing for the regulation of temporary employment services in various directives), promulgated legislation specifically with the aim to give effect to the principles in the mentioned directives. By way of doctrines and the creation of a third category ―worker‖ the UK has been attempting to prevent any loopholes in their legal system with regard to temporary employment services and the rights of the employees involved. The aim of this study is to investigate all the important complications experienced with temporary employment agencies in order to indicate the impact the atypical circumstances have on the rights of the temporary employees. The degree to which, if at all, the South African law complies with the preferred labour standards identified by the ILO will be pointed out. A comparative study will be conducted, first by ascertaining in detail how the comparable issues in the UK and Namibian law are dealt with, and second by identifying which aspects in these legal systems could be of value to the South African law. Finally the potential effectiveness of the proposed amendments to the South African labour legislation will be analysed, during which recommendations for the unresolved issues will be provided. The recommendations are mainly aimed at achieving sufficient rights and legal certainty for the temporary employees associated with temporary employment agencies.

Cette thèse se propose d'analyser l'accès à la justice civile pour les victimes de violations de droits de l'homme commises par des entreprises multinationales, au regard des règles de compétence internationale des tribunaux de international privé en matière de responsabilité civile délictuelle. La recherche mettra en exergue la double fonction que peuvent endosser les règles de compétence de droit international privé dans ce domaine, en assurant, d'une part, un accès effectif à la justice et à la réparation pour les victimes de tels abus, et en participant, d'autre part à l'effort de régulation des entreprises multinationales sur le plan global.

This thesis investigates how International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) come to act within an organizational context. In particular, the thesis explores how the requirements for goodwill accounting and leasing influence organizational calculative practices, transforming and shaping operations management. Drawing on actor-network theory, this study moves away from a priori distinctions, following the construction and mobilization of accounting numbers across institutionalized boundaries within and around the organization. The empirical investigation took place in a large, worldwide active media group that is listed on a European stock exchange. The group is a particular interesting setting because of its diverse business structure and its German code-law accounting roots. Business combinations are a major growth factor within the industry and a high degree of decentralization in the organization placed responsibility for investment decisions at low hierarchical levels. Goodwill accounting and impairment testing were therefore highly significant calculative practices in the group. The study finds that the constitutive role of the financial reporting standards in the organization both solves tensions and dilemmas around the number and creates new ones when crucial interests are lost in translation. These tensions and dilemmas arise between the aim of standardization and closure for the construction of a legitimate value of the future, and the aim to mobilize numbers in order to motivate and create value for a future. Originally intended for the financial representation of organizational substance and performance, the standards become associated with operations management activities, helping to create the faithful records that sum up the organization. This interrelation helps to close concern around the representation of the future in a ‘fair’ value by distributing the calculative practices over a wide network of actors spanning inside and outside the organization. However, the relationship also forces a connection between calculations and ambitions that otherwise would have preferred to stay separate. This thesis offers a new perspective on IFRS implementation by emphasizing organizational activities. Through a focus on integration and the link between financial and management accounting, the ‘implementation problems’ highlighted in previous literature gain a refined theorization. When taking organizational practice seriously, integration becomes a process that may find temporal stability but will never be final. In the process, conflicts might be solved but new dilemmas will arise. In turn, concepts like decision usefulness, comparability and earnings management cannot exist in a stable form but are rather constructed in networks that disregard commonly assumed boundaries inside and around the organization.

It is widely acknowledged that entrepreneurial companies play a key role in shaping a local economy. Entrepreneurial companies are a source of growth and innovation for an industry and provide jobs for the local population. However, entrepreneurs of high growth oriented companies rarely have the capital to finance their innovative ideas themselves and therefore also have to accept the risks associated with assessing and acquiring the necessary finance resources from other investors. The goal of this dissertation is to study the impact of venture capital (VC) finance on such entrepreneurial finance decisions. Although VC investors are a highly focused and specialized kind of investors that offer a wide range of differentiated services, it is to date still unclear how VC investors may reduce agency costs for other potential investors. The first study of this dissertation studies the effect of VC finance and associated VC ownership for finance decisions from other investors who have the potential to invest in these companies. This study demonstrates that VC ownership results into a larger supply of finance for the entrepreneurial company. Second, I find that VC ownership results into an even larger positive effect on capital investment decisions from equity investors as VC finance is typically also associated with the implementation of an equity-oriented corporate governance mechanism in entrepreneurial companies. VC ownership does not have an effect on the supply of finance from financial debt investors, however. Nevertheless, I find that debt finance is equally available for companies with VC ownership as compared to companies without VC ownership, which is a surprising result given the high risk associated with high growth companies that raise VC finance. Another important finding of this study is that the positive effect of VC ownership is stronger for repeated VC finance versus non-repeated VC finance. In fact, these results indicate that the effect of VC finance for entrepreneurial companies’ finance decisions is considerably larger if VC investors commit to further finance the company. The second study of this dissertation extends the first study and explores the effect of VC ownership on entrepreneurial finance decisions in different institutional settings. Although the effect of VC ownership is not limited to one specific institutional context, this study shows that its impact on entrepreneurial finance decisions is stronger in countries with a better quality of law enforcement and in countries where the entrepreneur is able to obtain a fresh start after bankruptcy. Specifically, in countries with a better enforcement of law, VC investors are more effective in reducing agency problems between entrepreneurs and potential investors. The attractiveness of a fresh start after bankruptcy will also be higher for an entrepreneur who raised VC finance, as VC investors focus more on maximizing the value of their portfolio rather than on the survival of individual firms. The third study acknowledges the fact that VC investors are not all equal and explores which VC investor types have more bargaining power versus the entrepreneur and how such differences in VC investor bargaining power affect company valuations in VC investment rounds. VC investor bargaining power is important because company valuations are the outcome of negotiations between the VC investor and the entrepreneur. We show that university VC firms and government VC firms negotiate lower valuations compared with independent VC firms. The proprietary deal flow of university VC firms and the limited competition in niche markets in which government VC firms compete will directly increase their bargaining power versus the entrepreneur, which these VC investor types then further exploit by negotiating lower company valuations compared with independent VC investors. Although differences in VC investor type did not affect entrepreneurial finance decisions in the first and second study, they do affect the equity stake that an entrepreneur will have to give up in order to raise VC finance and in order to a have a greater access to entrepreneurial finance from potential investors in the future.

This thesis comparatively analyses the SA income tax general anti-avoidance rule (GAAR) in s 80A-L of the Income Tax Act 58/1962 and similar rules in Australia, Canada, the UK and the judicial doctrines in the US and the UK. It is argued that, while the SA GAAR may serve as a deterrent, it is going to have limited efficacy against impermissible tax avoidance due to the uncertainty it creates. It is argued that uncertainty will cause judicial activism to protect permissible tax avoidance, extensive and inconsistent judicial interpretation and confusion amongst taxpayers and SARS as to what constitutes permissible or impermissible tax avoidance. This thesis ends by recommending certain amendments, based on the comparative analysis, to the SA GAAR which can reduce uncertainty and thus improve it efficacy.

In a region where there is diversity of laws, the author maintains that law reform is a catalyst for investment and development. This thesis aims at demonstrating that OHADA provides practical lessons for the development of a uniform commercial law structure in the SADC. This is following OHADA’s success in developing uniform commercial rules that are directly applicable in the contracting states. To achieve this, the thesis uses a “structured focused comparison” methodology that allows for two separate, but structurally linked accounts of the structures of both organisations. In exploring the structures of both organisations, the thesis endeavours to: determine whether there is the need for the development of a commercial law structure in the SADC; whether such a structure can be developed within the current SADC structure and whether OHADA can serve as a possible model for the SADC. The findings show that no part of the African continent has witnessed regional legal reform on the scale of that initiated by OHADA. It equally reveals the absence of a uniform commercial law structure in the SADC and the lack of supranational structures to adopt full panoply of business laws and to preserve the uniformity of laws in the member states. The findings from this thesis provide evidence that there is the need forthe development of a commercial law structure in the SADC and improvement of the current SADC structure. There is no doubt that thi swould do away with legal uncertainty in cross-border commercial transactions among SADC states.

The Tanzanian private sector is growing, partly due to the state’s efforts to conform to the global economy. As the economy expands and the National Microfinance Policy of 2001 is realised, more and more credit has been made available to consumers. As a direct consequence of the increase of credit, the number of over- indebted consumers in Tanzania is on the rise. The current debt relief system is regulated by the Tanzanian Bankruptcy Act no. 9 of 1930, a piece of colonial legislation. Unfortunately this law is ineffective, costly and outdated. Some of the problems identified in this study with this debt relief regime include the lack of a cost- effective alternative to bankruptcy and its total reliance on the judiciary, an institution that is itself overburdened and requires reform. The purpose of this study is to make recommendations for the reform of the current debt relief system and propose a debt relief dispensation for consumer debtors in Tanzania that will efficiently cure over- indebtedness. A wide comparative investigation was undertaken in this study of selected common law, civil and mixed legal systems that have substantial experience with the boom in over-indebted consumers now facing Tanzania. A number of solutions were borrowed from these systems that may potentially solve Tanzania’s debt relief problem. One of the main findings of this thesis is that, over time, developed jurisdictions that rely on credit in the private sector appear to be converging on the same type of procedures and moderate philosophies for consumer debt relief. These include less judicial supervision for debt relief procedures, less freedom of choice for over-indebted consumers when it comes to the type of procedures available, and mandatory surplus income repayments for debtors who can afford it. In order to address the problems of the Tanzanian debt relief system, this thesis proposes a complete overhaul of the administration of debt relief procedures in Tanzania and the introduction of a combined alternative to bankruptcy that consists of three joint procedures. A number of amendments are also proposed for the Bankruptcy Act no.9 of 1930. This thesis states the status of legal developments as they were in the selected jurisdictions on 31 December 2012.

This study is concerned with integration efforts on the African continent. This study sets out to investigate the politico-legal and economic impediments to regional and continental integration efforts in Africa. The documents, processes, and organs of the African Union, as the main continental organisation, are the focal point of this study. In order to achieve this, the study primarily adopted a qualitative approach since the literature involved in this work could not be reduced to a quantitative concept. The study ensured that the premises and the conclusions in this work conform to the principles of reliability and validity and in addition the elimination of bias in this was curtailed by validation and triangulation. This was achieved by the fact that the arguments in this work were not only based on qualitative arguments but, where possible, quantitative data was brought in to validate/ triangulate the qualitative arguments. Evidently, the study would have been incomplete if it did not discuss and evaluate the many regional economic communities that have been established to further the objectives of the Treaty establishing the African Economic Community. One of the major premises that this study discovers is that there is a direct and demonstrable relationship between democracy and economic progress; genuine and sustainable development has to be fostered primarily by securing peace and stability on the African continent. Some of the other key findings of the study include that; a) the ultimate goal of the African Union is full political and economic integration leading to the United States of Africa; b) overlapping memberships to a custom unions are highly detrimental to the state since it has to subscribe resources and political will to two or more different arrangements. c) overlapping memberships cause confusion, inertia and most importantly legal uncertainty thereby stifling trade liberalisation efforts; d) many African states still guard their sovereignty closely and that many perceive that yielding their sovereignty to a continental body is tantamount to losing their independence; e) the African Union infrastructure still lacks supra-national and national institutions that are capable of implementing its values; f) the African Union infrastructure does not contain an institutionalised mechanism for the promotion and management of Union affairs at national level; g) the NEPAD initiatives, the APRM process and the functions of the Peace and Security Council play a positive role in African politico-legal and economic development. It has however been shown that these mechanisms are more reactive than preventative and as such intervene too late in the internal affairs of member states; h) armed conflicts cause a reduction in the per-capita Gross Domestic Product growth rate of a nation experiencing a civil war/ conflicts. i) the African Union has regressed from the original timelines of the African Economic Community. The highest regression being Phase 2 which involves the most critical element of strengthening of African regional integration arrangements and the harmonisation of policies concerned. A thirteen (13) year postponement is noted in this regard. j) Africa's poor intra-trade performance is also attributed to the limited progress among African countries in fostering structural transformation. This structural transformation relates to the building of roads, bridges, railway lines and power grids; In order for the African continent to re-position itself in an attempt to harness the benefits of regional integration, some of the recommendations that the study makes are that; a) the African Union grant supra-national status to institutions of the Union for the equitable and speedy attainment of integration; b) the Union and member states should as soon as possible create mechanisms with decision making powers to manage Union affairs at regional and national level; c) the operationalization of the Pan African Parliament should be pursued with the utmost determination to bring the Parliament to full functionality as a Continental legislative body; d) the operationalization of the African Court of Justice and Human Rights be completed as soon as possible in order to allow the body to function as a fully-fledged continental judiciary. This will ensure that the development of integration jurisprudence from an international law perspective is not delayed. The Court will also pursue the enforcement of Human rights norms and practices; e) the Union should further lead the continent in the following sectors with clear and predictable deliverables; i) the establishment and upgrading of regional land, air, and other means of transportation and communication; ii) the creation of a cross-border power and energy generation and distribution network; iii) the establishment, advancement, and diversification of regional financial and commodity markets; iv) the establishment of a regional higher education system by facilitating wider access through specialization in regional integration; The study further acknowledges that these recommendations are not conclusive since the study of regional integration is still at its infancy and many other ideas on how to strengthen African regional integration still await discovery.