Directors' Remuneration Before and After the Crisis: Measuring the Impact of Reforms in Europe.

In this paper we measure the impact of recent reforms on directors’ remuneration by comparing the remuneration practices at large European listed companies before and after the financial crisis. Our data-set is composed of the FTSE Eurofirst 300 Index companies, save for some adjustments required by the scope and purposes of our research. We analyse the data concerning directors’ remuneration at these firms and assess to what extent the changes occurred between 2007 and 2010 reflect the economic crisis determined by the 2008 financial turmoil and the remuneration reforms generated by the same. Our analysis reveals that country-specific characteristics such as corporate governance, firm ownership, and the nature and quality of the legal system still have a relevant impact on the level and structure of directors’ pay.