This study compares the concept of the mandatory takeover bid regulated under Article 26 of the Capital Markets Law No. 6362, with the obligation to contract as understood in the Turkish Law of Obligations doctrine. The aim is to identify the differences between the mandatory takeover bid, sometimes portrayed as a manifestation of the obligation to contract, and the obligation to contract as developed in the law of obligations literature, as well as the legal consequences arising from those differences. Under the mandatory takeover bid regime, persons who acquire management control of a publicly held joint-stock company are obliged, by following the procedure prescribed by law, to make an offer to purchase the shares of the other shareholders. By contrast, under the obligation to contract, a person is required to accept an offer directed to them and thereby bring the contract into existence. While both share a common protective purpose aimed at safeguarding the weaker party, their essential difference lies in which declaration of intent is made mandatory. In other words, under the mandatory takeover bid, it is the offer that must be made; under the obligation to contract, it is the acceptance that is mandatory. After establishing this distinction, the study examines its normative significance and legal implications. These implications stem from the temporal sequence of offer and acceptance, which determines the specific distinctions between the two concepts. From this perspective, the analysis identifies divergences in terms of the emergence and maturity of the obligation, the moment of contract formation, the party whose manifestation of intent brings the contract into existence, the effect of a claim for specific performance on the formation of the contract, and the allocation of the burden of proof in compensating for delay-based loss in cases of debtor’s default.
Capital Market Law No. 6362 Capital Market Law Article 26 management control publicly held joint-stock company obligation to contract
| Primary Language | English |
|---|---|
| Subjects | Law in Context (Other) |
| Journal Section | Research Article |
| Authors | |
| Submission Date | July 7, 2024 |
| Acceptance Date | November 25, 2024 |
| Publication Date | January 16, 2026 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.26650/mecmua.2025.83.4.0010 |
| IZ | https://izlik.org/JA54GB76MA |
| Published in Issue | Year 2025 Volume: 83 Issue: 4 |