Government measures in key jurisdictions 5th edition - Flipbook - Page 138
Sweden
Litigation
Operation of Swedish Courts
Are the courts
operating?
Swedish courts are operating normally, while observing social distancing guidelines and
Covid-19-related precautions. A new act on special restrictions to prevent the spread of
Covid-19 (the “Pandemic Act”) entered into force on 10 January 2021. The Pandemic Act
gives the Swedish Government, or any other authority authorised by the Swedish
Government, the competence to issue restrictions in order to reduce the spread of Covid19. The Swedish Government has restricted the number of participants allowed at public
gatherings/events, prohibiting gatherings with more than eight participants; however, court
hearings are not considered public gatherings, and each court decides on suitable
precautions (e.g. the number of audience seats may be limited). The number of hearings
being cancelled and postponed has increased slightly in the beginning of the years 2021,
but despite this the number of such cancellations has almost returned to pre-Covid-19
levels. The increased digitalization brought on by the pandemic (e.g. the number of
hearings being carried out remotely via video conferencing technology has increased by
almost 90 per cent compared to the year before) has in fact contributed to the number of
adjudicated cases reaching record levels. The Swedish National Courts Administration
produces statistics on how the courts are affected by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Tax
Please note that we do not have a tax department internally, therefore we may not advise on tax
aspects.
Has any new
legislation been
introduced in light
of Covid-19?
Company
law
matters
Have any
measures been
put in place to
accommodate
social distancing
(such as remote
general
meetings)?
138
Remote general meetings
The Swedish Parliament has adopted a temporary law that allows Swedish companies to
conduct general meetings with remote participation during the Covid-19 pandemic. The
measures included in the temporary law permit companies to collect proxy forms in respect
of general meetings and enables companies to allow shareholders to vote by post at general
meetings even if such option is originally not included in the company’s articles of
association, as well as to conduct general meetings electronically in combination with postal
voting, or solely by postal voting. The temporary law is effective throughout 2021.
The Swedish Corporate Governance Code
The Swedish Corporate Governance Board (Sw. Kollegiet för Svensk Bolagsstyrning) has
decided that companies do not have to apply section 1.1 - 1.3 of the Swedish Corporate
Governance Code (the “Code”) throughout 2021. The Code, which applies to publicly listed
companies, sets out norms for good corporate governance and applies on a “comply-orexplain” basis. The aforementioned suspended rules contain requirements regarding
advance publication of the date of the general meeting, attendance of board members and
the CEO at the general meeting and presentation of proposals regarding election of the
chair at the general meeting. Consequently, publicly listed companies do not have to
comply with these requirements or explain any deviations from the aforementioned rules.
Government measures in key jurisdictions
