Takeover Directive
The Takeover Directive 2004/25/EC is an EU Directive dealing with European company law's treatment of mergers and acquisitions. It concerns the standards takeover bidders must comply with in how long a bid stays open to, who they offer to, and the information companies must give to the public about the bid. The most controversial provision, which eventually was made optional, was the requirement of the board of directors of a target company to be neutral in the bid process.