frustrating rules ; ;Amendments proposed to European takeover rules will make transatlantic activity more difficult and therefore costly and time-consuming, a leading City lawyer has said.

;Richard Godden, head of the investment bank practice group at Linklaters & Alliance and a one-time secretary to the Takeover Panel, expressed particular concern over proposals to give directors powers to frustrate unwelcome takeover offers for transferring power from shareholders to management.

He also said plans for a new legal duty to safeguard jobs could prejudice the creation of a more flexible labour market, while the regulatory regime for takeovers would be inflexible and severely limit the ability of regulatory authorities to waive and adapt rules.

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