ČLANSTVO KORISNIKA I INVESTITORA U ZADRUZI: UPOREDNI PREGLED UREĐENJA U EVROPSKOM PRIVREDNOM PROSTORU I SAD

Članak analizira uređenje članstva u novijem zadružnem zakonodavstvu unutar Evropskog privrednog prostora (EPP) i u Sjedinjenim američkim državama (SAD). Dok se zadruge u EPP mogu osnivati i delovati prema nacionalnom zadružnom zakonodavstvu ili na osnovi nadnacionalnog modela Evropske zadruge (Societas Cooperativa Europaea, SCE), u SAD opšti propisi o zadrugama (ako se ne uzmu u obzir kreditne zadruge, koje su regulisane saveznim zakonodavstvom i zakonima pojedinih država), spadaju u zakonodavnu nadležnost pojedinih država. Zajednička značajka novijih zadružnih propisa je težnja za jačanjem kapitalske osnove zadruga pa se zadrugama dopušta da pored članova korisnika odnosno sarađujućih članova primaju u članstvo i investitore kojima isključivo na osnovi kapitalskog ulaganja pripadaju određena imovinska i upravljačka prava. Uredba br. 1435/2003/EZ o statutu SCE upućuje u pogledu dopuštenosti članstva investitora kao i u pogledu njihovih upravljačkih, a naročito imovinskih prava na zadružno zakonodavstvo države prema sedištu SCE. U SAD, članstvo investitora je, kao izvor dodatnog sopstvenog kapitala zadruge, podrobnije uređeno u Jedinstvenom zakonu o zadružnim udruženjima sa ograničenom odgovornošću, prihvaćenom 2007. godine, koji služi kao model (uzorak) za uvođenje ovog instituta u državama koje ga još nisu regulisale.Članak analizira uređenje članstva u novijem zadružnem zakonodavstvu unutar Evropskog privrednog prostora (EPP) i u Sjedinjenim američkim državama (SAD). Dok se zadruge u EPP mogu osnivati i delovati prema nacionalnom zadružnom zakonodavstvu ili na osnovi nadnacionalnog modela Evropske zadruge (Societas Cooperativa Europaea, SCE), u SAD opšti propisi o zadrugama (ako se ne uzmu u obzir kreditne zadruge, koje su regulisane saveznim zakonodavstvom i zakonima pojedinih država), spadaju u zakonodavnu nadležnost pojedinih država. Zajednička značajka novijih zadružnih propisa je težnja za jačanjem kapitalske osnove zadruga pa se zadrugama dopušta da pored članova korisnika odnosno sarađujućih članova primaju u članstvo i investitore kojima isključivo na osnovi kapitalskog ulaganja pripadaju određena imovinska i upravljačka prava. Uredba br. 1435/2003/EZ o statutu SCE upućuje u pogledu dopuštenosti članstva investitora kao i u pogledu njihovih upravljačkih, a naročito imovinskih prava na zadružno zakonodavstvo države prema sedištu SCE. U SAD, članstvo investitora je, kao izvor dodatnog sopstvenog kapitala zadruge, podrobnije uređeno u Jedinstvenom zakonu o zadružnim udruženjima sa ograničenom odgovornošću, prihvaćenom 2007. godine, koji služi kao model (uzorak) za uvođenje ovog instituta u državama koje ga još nisu regulisale

Usporedni osvrt na neke posebnosti u korporacijskom oporezivanju zadruga

Polazeći od bitnih korporacijskopravnih odrednica zadruge kao pravne osobe posebnog tipa, autor uspoređuje položaj zadruga u sustavima korporacijskog poreza u državama članicama Europske unije. Iako su rješenja u državama članicama Europske unije vrlo različita, specifičnosti položaja zadruge u sustavu korporacijskog poreza dolaze do izražaja prije svega u tzv. ristornu kao mogućem odbitku od porezne osnovice ili u sniženoj poreznoj stopi odnosno u poreznom oslobođenju za onaj dio dobiti koji se po osnovi određenih mjerila pripisuje sudjelovanju zadruge s članovima. U nekim su državama porezne olakšice predviđene i za ograničene dividende (»kamate«) što ih zadruge isplaćuju članovima po osnovi udjela kapitala i/ili iznosa uloženih u zakonske odnosno nedjeljive pričuve

Slovenia: In Search of a Sensitive Balance between Economic, Social, and Ecological Functions of Agricultural Land and Rural Areas

The Slovenian Constitution guarantees the right to private property and inheritance; emphasizes the economic, social, and environmental functions of property and grants special protection to agricul- tural land. According to these provisions, middle-sized family farms are protected against division so that they are, in principle, inherited by a single testamentary or intestate heir, while the number of other heirs and their inheritance shares are reduced. The legal transfer of agricultural land, forests, and farms is subject to several substantial restrictions and prior administrative control. After a general prohibition to divide the protected farms inter vivos was lifted in spring 2022, the disposal of protected farms has been less restricted, but the number of protected farms is expected to decrease. The legislation on agricultural land, protected farms, forests, and agricultural communities, as well as on nature conservation, water, cultural heritage protection, and spatial planning, regulate several preemption rights, of which two or more concur in many a case. To prevent the circumvention of statutory preemption rights, conclusion donation contracts are also restricted. In certain cases, the physical division of agricultural and forest plots is prohibited by the law. Lease contracts of agricul- tural land are also regulated by some special provisions (relating to prelease rights, minimum lease period, and so on) and subject to prior administrative control. The current legislation and interna- tional treaties allow citizens and legal persons of certain states (e.g., the EU member states) as well as persons with the status of a Slovene without Slovene citizenship to acquire agricultural land, so that reciprocity is not required. Citizens and legal persons of certain other states may acquire agricultural land based on a legal transaction, inheritance, or a state body’s decision under condition of reciproc- ity, while citizens and legal persons of all other states may acquire agricultural land only on the basis of inheritance and under a condition of reciprocity. The statutory provisions on the legal transfer of agricultural land and holdings have been assessed several times by the Constitutional Court from the standpoint of constitutional right to private property and inheritance; economic, social, and environmental function of property; free economic initiative; rule of law; and the principles of legal certainty and proportionality

Usporedni osvrt na neke posebnosti u korporacijskom oporezivanju zadruga

Polazeći od bitnih korporacijskopravnih odrednica zadruge kao pravne osobe posebnog tipa, autor uspoređuje položaj zadruga u sustavima korporacijskog poreza u državama članicama Europske unije. Iako su rješenja u državama članicama Europske unije vrlo različita, specifičnosti položaja zadruge u sustavu korporacijskog poreza dolaze do izražaja prije svega u tzv. ristornu kao mogućem odbitku od porezne osnovice ili u sniženoj poreznoj stopi odnosno u poreznom oslobođenju za onaj dio dobiti koji se po osnovi određenih mjerila pripisuje sudjelovanju zadruge s članovima. U nekim su državama porezne olakšice predviđene i za ograničene dividende (»kamate«) što ih zadruge isplaćuju članovima po osnovi udjela kapitala i/ili iznosa uloženih u zakonske odnosno nedjeljive pričuve

Agricultural Co-operatives in the Republic of Slovenia

Predmet je ovoga rada proces tranzicije i prestrukturiranja poljoprivrednih zadruga Slovenije u postsocijalističkorn razdoblju, što je završen pristupanjem Slovenije Europskoj Uniji. Autor u članku ponajprije u sažetu pregledu iznosi temeljne značajke pojave i razvoja poljoprivrednih zadruga na teritoriju Slovenije a potom cjelovito analizira promjene u razdoblju nakon stjecanja samostalnosti i priprema za pridruživanje EU. U prvome dijelu rada razvidno je da su zadruge, što su se u Sloveniji pojavile rano u 19. stoljeću, imale važnu ulogu u razvoju seljačkih gospodarstava, poljoprivrede i sela do stvaranja Kraljevine SHS odnosno Kraljevine Jugoslavije, kad je došlo do osipanja a potom sporog oporavka. Razvoj slovenskoga poljoprivrednog zadrugarstva nakon Drugoga svjetskog rata do osamostaljivanja Slovenije obilježili su učestali zahvati države. Za razliku od toga, tijekom sistemskih promjena nakon osamostaljivanja Slovenije, intervencija je države, uglavnom, ograničena na uređivanje pravnog okvira te na neka specifična rješenja privatizacije čiji je cilj bio osigurati poljoprivrednim zadrugama bolje polazište na prijelazu u kompetitivan, tržišni gospodarski sustav. U godinama neposredno prije pristupanja Slovenije Europskoj Uniji, poljoprivredne su zadruge mogle steći i neke poticaje za prestrukturiranje, ali su slične potpore bile dostupne i poljoprivrednim domaćinstvima i prehrambenoj industriji. Suprotno prijašnjem sistemu, koji je brojne cjenovne i tržišne poticaje za tekuću proizvodnju osiguravao zadrugama i njihovim članovima, poslije 1991. ti poticaji pripadaju fizičkim i pravnim osobama, bez obzira na organizacijski oblik proizvodnje, i poprimaju oblik izravnih isplata, odmičući se sve više od zadruga, ali i od tržišne proizvodnje. Podaci o poslovanju poljoprivrednih zadruga govore kako je posljednjih godina smanjen broj zaposlenih, dok se prosječan prihod po zadruzi unekoliko povećao. Promjenom poslovanja štedno-kreditnih zadruga i osnutkom Seoske banke Slovenije, na nov je način uređeno i kreditiranje. No, proces koncentracije poljoprivrednih zadruga - važan čimbenik jačanja kompetitivnosti - odvija se znatno sporije nego u prerađivačkoj industriji, a poglavito u trgovini na malo. Budući da su mogućnosti kvantitativnog rasta poljoprivredne proizvodnje ograničene, zadrugama predstoji velik izazov učvršćivanja članstva, poboljšanja kvalitete sadašnjih proizvoda i traganja za novim djelatnostima, radi stvaranja nove vrijednosti, kako bi poboljšale pregovaračku poziciju s prerađivačkom industrijom i trgovinom.The subject of this article is the process of transition and restructuring of agricultural co-operatives in Slovenia in the post-socialist period, the process which finished with the Slovenian accession to the European Union. At first, the author presents a short review of the basic characteristics of appearance and development of agricultural co-operatives in Slovenia, and later he analyses the changes in period after Slovenia gained independence and preparing for accession to EU. At the begining of article we can see that the co-operative societis, which in Slovenia was appeared in the early 19th century, have the important role in development of peasant holdings, agriculture and villages till the forming of Kingdom of Yugoslavia, when come to standstill and after that to the slowly recovery. While the history of the Slovenian agricultural cooperation after the Second World War was characterised by frequent interventions of the State, after Slovenia gained independence n 1991, the government\u27s role in this field has been limited to building a suitable legal framework and to the regulation of specific solutions in the privatisation process which were supposed to assure an appropriate starting point for co-operatives at the entrance in the competitive, market economic system. In the recent years before the Slovenian accession to the EU, the agricultural co-operatives were able to obtain same state aid for their restructuring measures, but this aid were not incomparable with the similar support for agricultural holdings and food processing industry. Contrary to the previous system, where numerous price and market subsidies for the current production were provided to co-operatives and their members, the agricultural subsidies after 1991 have been granted to individuals and legal entities regardless of the production organizational form and are continuously shifting towards income payments, i. e. away from the agricultural co-operatives, but also from the market production. The data about the activities of agricultural co-operatives show that in recent years the number of employed person s is decreasing, while the average income is increased in this period. However, the concentration of agricultural co-operatives is moving ahead far slower than in food processing industry, and, above all, in retail trade. As the possible quantitative growth of agricultural production will be limited in the future years, the agricultural co-operatives are heading an immense challenge of consolidation of the membership base. improving the quality of existing products and introduction of new products to increase their value added as well as further restructuring in order to improve their bargaining position with processing industry and trade

Legal Problems of the Generic Advertising in Agriculture

Generic promotion, financed by mandatory assessments from producers, is often an instrument used by the agricultural policy in order to further the demand and to broaden the market of agricultural products. The generic promotion generates also some legal problems. The first among them is the relation between mandatory assessments and the constitutionally warranted freedom of the speech. The most numerous judgments about this issue are found in USA, where the courts have developed various criteria within the theory of »commercial speech« and the theory of »government's speech«. In the European Community (European Union), the Commission as well as the Court of Justice have dealt with the question under what conditions the mandatory assessments for promotion of agricultural products should be qualified as measures, which have equivalent effect as prohibited quantitative restrictions in free movements of goods between Member States, as well as with the problem of products double charged with mandatory assessments for generic promotion, firstly in the Member State of origin, and secondly, in the Member State of destination

La coopération en Slovénie : entre reconnaissance et déni

This article surveys the history of the cooperative movement in Slovenia since the late 19th century mainly from a legal perspective. The country has experienced profound political upheavals that have left their mark on the development of cooperatives. The first part covers a century of cooperative history from the period of Austro-Hungarian influence through the Soviet era and the assertion of self-managed socialism under Tito, and then finally to the country’s independence and entry into the European Union. The second part of the article looks at recent developments in cooperative legislation and the application of the European Cooperative Society regulation. Providing a snapshot of Slovenia’s cooperative movement today, the article highlights some unresolved issues such as the diversification of cooperatives (access to various activities), equal treatment instate aid schemes, and the incentive and control system for cooperatives with indivisible capital.Cet article propose un aperçu historique du fait coopératif en Slovénie depuis la fin du xixe siècle, principalement sous l’angle juridique. Le pays a en effet connu de profonds bouleversements politiques qui ont marqué le développement des coopératives. La première partie revient sur un siècle de coopération, de l’influence austro-hongroise à l’indépendance du pays et à son entrée dans l’Union européenne, en passant par l’ère soviétique et l’affirmation d’une voie socialiste autogestionnaire sous Tito. La seconde partie de l’article s’ouvre sur les évolutions législatives en cours suite à l’application du règlement de la société coopérative européenne (SCE) et, en présentant un panorama contemporain de l’économie coopérative en Slovénie, soulève des problèmes non résolus tels que la diversification des coopératives (accès à diverses activités), l’égalité de traitement dans le système des aides d’État et les modalités des dispositifs d’incitation et de contrôle pour les coopératives à capital indivisible

Agricultural Cooperatives and Cooperative Law

The paper analyses the advantages and weakpoints of cooperatives, especially in agriculture, as they are identified by the contemporary cooperative theory. The theoretical findings are connected with the comparative survey of recent developments of the cooperative law, where the draft new model law on agricultural cooperatives in USA, the Regulation No. 1435/2003/EC about the statute of the European Cooperative Society (Societas Cooperativa Europaea, SCE) and cooperative regulation in some other states as well as the Slovenian Act on Cooperatives are mentioned. The development of the modern cooperative law is characterised by two trends. Due to the globalisation, the cooperative law is being directly or, at least indirectly, hamonized on the international level. The setting up of internal market in various integrations (EU, for instance), which includes the free movement of production factors and widely interpreted right of establishment, brings also more or less latent competition among different legal regimes. Moreover, in several states some legal provisions about cooperatives are being modelled following the joint-stock company example. All these developments have their advantages and risks

The Interrelationship Between Agricultural and Competition Law

In the last two decades, the common agricultural policy (CAP) has been moving its main area from direct market interventions to direct payments. As these changes have disclosed highly asymmetrical bargaining power of different stakeholders in the agrifood chain, the proposed legal acts aknowledge greater importance to producers' organisations. However, agreements, decisions and concerted practices of undertakings and their associations are subject also to the competition law. The paper analyses the recent developments of competition law in EU with regard to the agricultural producers' organisations. As competition aspects will play a greater role in the future CAP, more conflicts between the general (agricultural) policy support to producers' organisations and individual provisions of competition law provisions may be expected