Implications of U.S. Sarbanes-Oxley Act

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20 August 2002 Implications of U.S. Sarbanes-Oxley Act in the Antitrust Field for European Companies The Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 became law in the United States on 30 July 2002. It makes dramatic changes in the law governing public companies, accounting firms, law firms, investment banks, and securities firms. The Act also contains important provisions that reach into the antitrust and competition realm. Many of these rules are important for non-U.S. companies.The Sarbanes-Oxley Act is intended to restore investor confidence in the U.S. securities markets by rectifying recent accounting and other corporate abuses which caused public outcry in the United States. The U.S. Congress passed the Act with almost unprecedented speed and many of the provisions were adopted without the benefit of the normal legislative process. Accordingly, the new law is broad in scope and rife with interpretational issues. It is critical that European in-house and outside counsel as well as busines...