Copyright
Michael Bakker; Rolef de Weijs;Published On
2025-06-05Page Range
pp. 155–170Language
- English
Print Length
16 pages
Limited Liability through the Lens of Expected Value Analysis
- Michael Bakker (author)
- Rolef de Weijs (author)
The aim of this chapter is to illustrate how limited liability rules enable the transfer of risks and costs away from the shareholders of a corporation to other parties, such as creditors. We illustrate this inherent feature of limited liability by applying expected value analysis, a simple and intuitive analytical framework, to two stylised numerical examples. Subsequently, we briefly discuss several legal strategies that seek to address the externalisation of risks and costs through the corporate form.
Contributors
Michael Bakker
(author)Michael Bakker, LL.M. is PhD Fellow at the Amsterdam Law School and ACT. In his
research, he focuses on the role of shareholders and the general meeting with respect to
the sustainability/ESG strategy and policy of publicly listed companies. He is a lecturer
in corporate and commercial law. He holds master’s degrees in law (LL.M.) and finance
(M.Sc.) from the University of Amsterdam and he was a visiting student at Columbia Law
School. See https://www.uva.nl/profiel/b/a/m.h.c.bakker/m.h.c.bakker.html#Profiel
Rolef de Weijs
(author)Prof. Dr. Rolef de Weijs is Professor in Insolvency Law at the Amsterdam Law School
and ACT. He holds a master’s in law and philosophy from Groningen University and
an LL.M. degree from Harvard Law School. He also participated in the Japan Prize
Winners’ Programme. He did his Ph.D. research at the Amsterdam Institute for Private
law. In 2010, he defended his Ph.D. thesis ‘Faillissementspauliana, Insolvenzanfechtung
& Transaction Avoidance in Insolvencies’. De Weijs specialises in insolvency law,
corporate law, and corporate finance. De Weijs practices law as an attorney and a court
appointed trustee in bankruptcy at Houthoff, a law firm in Amsterdam. See https://