The European Union Court of Justice has today struck down the European Union mandate for public registers of beneficial ownership of all companies.

In a strong affirmation of the position taken by Bermuda over many years, the court has ruled against the EU on the issue.

The Justices ruled that the provision whereby the information on the beneficial ownership of companies incorporated within the territory of member states is accessible in all cases to any member of the general public, is invalid.

The court has ruled that registers containing the personal details of the owners of a company and accessible to the general public is an infringement of fundamental rights of privacy and personal data protection.