The liability of Credit Rating Agencies in a Comparative Perspective

The contribution analyses the liability regimes of Credit Rating Agencies in different legal systems. It draws a distinction between solicited as opposed to unsolicited ratings and - hence - between contractual and tortious liability (from the perspective of the rated company). It also considers the position of both subscribers of services offered by Credit Rating Agencies (primarily, banks) as well as of prospective investors, and draws a distinction between the different line of reasoning - and results - of how (prospective) liabiity by the Credit Rating Agencies is construed in the different legal systems. The work considers - amongs others - the difficult issue related to compensation for pure economic loss and outlines the different legal theories adopted in the various legal systems to prevent that the affirmation of Credit Rating Agencies' responsibility results in crushing liability.