INSTITUTIONAL RECONFIGURATION OF ENTREPRENEURSHIP IN UKRAINE AS A RESULT OF LEGISLATIVE REFORMS

Abstract

The article conceptualizes the institutional reconfiguration of entrepreneurship in Ukraine caused by the abolition of the Commercial Code and adoption of accompanying legislative reforms through the lens of neo-institutional economic theory, applying Williamson’s multi-level model of institutional structure. The purpose is to analyze the process of institutional reconfiguration as a result of legislative reforms and identify prospects for forming a civil-corporate model of entrepreneurship compatible with European standards. The author’s contribution lies in developing a structural-functional scheme that synthesizes theoretical provisions of neo-institutional economics with empirical observations of legislative transformations in Ukraine. The study examines how the abolition of archaic organizational-legal forms affects transaction costs, coordination mechanisms, and entrepreneurial incentives. The scientific novelty consists in applying neo-institutional theory to analyze Ukrainian legislative reforms. The study demonstrates that in the short term, transaction costs temporarily increase due to adaptation to new legal norms, document audits, and re-registration. Long-term reduction is expected through eliminating legal dualism, simplifying organizational-legal forms, reducing regulatory burden, and increasing transparency of corporate relations. The study reveals fundamental change in coordination mechanism from hierarchical-directive model characteristic of the Commercial Code to expanded contractual autonomy based on the Civil Code. This transition strengthens incentives for effective management, reduces agency costs, and facilitates Ukraine’s integration into European legal space. The practical significance lies in identifying unresolved issues of legal regulation including lack of regulation of agency agreements, special limitation periods, and economic sanctions, creating legal uncertainty during the transition period. Recommendations are formulated for improving legislation and developing civil-corporate entrepreneurship model. The main conclusion is that Commercial Code abolition initiates institutional reconfiguration combining dismantling of the economic-legal model with strengthening civil-corporate regulation. Despite temporary transaction costs growth during transition period, long-term prospects involve formation of more efficient institutional environment for Ukrainian entrepreneurship.