COMPANY LAW
A. THE NATURE OF A REGISTERED COMPANY
Person who wish to carry on a business in common with a view of profit
May do either in the guise of
A company
A partnership
“person” – a subject of rights and duties & therefore, includes ‘artificial person’
A registered company is on entity district from its member
Solomon vs Solomon & Co. Ltd. (1897) A C 22
Debts & obligations incurred in the course of the company’s business are those of
the company.
The statutory law relating to registered company is Companies Act 1965.
B. INCORPORATION
It is essential to register
To obtain a Certificate of Incorporation
To have the company’s Memorandum of Association and Articles of Association
Memorandum of Association
Ashbury Railway Carriage Co. vs. Riche (1875) L.R. 7 H.L. 653.
pp. 667-668
With regard to the Memorandum of Association ….that is, as it were, the
charter, and define the limitation of the powers of a company to be
established under the Act. With regard to the Articles of Association, those
Articles play a part subsidiary to the Memorandum of Association. They
accept the memorandum of association as the charter of incorporation of
the company, and so accepting it, the articles proceed to defune the duties,
the rights and the powers of the governing body as between themselves and
the company at large and the mode and the form in which changes in the
internal regulations of the company may from time to time be made.
Name:
Situation of the registered office
Objects – main objeccts
Change of objects
Articles of Association
(must not contain anything contrary to the general law of to the provisions
of its Memorandum)
Contains the detialed regulations for the internal administration of the
company and deal with such matters, inter alia.
i.
ii.
iii.
iv.
the issue and transfer of shares
the conduct of the company meetings
the appointment (termination) of directors
the powers of directors
It contains covenants on the part of each member to observe all provisions
of the Memorandum and Articles.
Four legal effect of the Articles:

Each member is under an obligation to the company to act in
accordance with the Articles (Hickman vs. Kent of Romney Marsh
Sheepbreeders’ Association (1915)! Ch 881)

Each member is given contractual rights against the company but only
to a limited extent (Eley vs. Positive Assurance Co. (19876) 1 Ex D
88)

There is no contractual obligation between the company/its members
to non-members.

C.
“a person, who is not a party to a contract, acquires neither rights
nor liabilities under the contract”.
The Articles constitute a contract between the individual members of
the company, and they regulate the member’s mutual rights and
duties as members.
Rayfield vs. Hands (1960) Ch.1
MANAGEMENT OF THE COMPANY
A company’s Articles provide that the business of the company shall be managed
by the Directors.
The Directors may appoint one or more of their body to the office of Managing
Director – they may confer upon him any of the powers exercisable by them on
such terms and conditions as they think fit.
When acting on behalf of the company directors are agents of the company.
The powers – they should only exercise for the benefit of the company.
-
Piercy v. S. Mills & Co.
(1920) 1 Ch 77
Directors (a minority of the voting power), alloted shares to
themselves and their friends
Held: The allotments were invalid & void
They must not make secret profits from their position as Directors (even though
the acquired the profit in all honesty and good faith)
- Regal (Hastings) Ltd. V Gulliver
(1942) 1 All E R 378
They should not place themselves in a position where their duty and their personal
interest conflict. Therefore, a contract between a director and his company is
voidable by the company.
Several other prohibitions are also provided under the Companies Act and in the
Articles of Associations
D. COMPANY’S MEETINGS
Types of Meetings
Two types of meeting
- Shareholders meeting
(i) Annual General Meeting
(ii) Extra Ordinary General Meeting
- Directors Meeting
Refer to Articles of Association of the Company with regards to conducting
of meetings .
Annual General Meeting
 Must be held at least once in every calendar year in addition to any other
General Meetings held in that year.
 Notices convening the meeting must specify to be the “Annual General
Meeting” of the Company (section 143 Companies Act 1965).
 14 days’ written notice is required to be given to members
( Section 145(3) )
 The purpose of meeting
(i)
to receive and consider the Director’s and Auditors’ reports, the
Accounts and Balance Sheet;
(ii)
to sanction the dividend (if any) recommended by the directors;
(iii)
to appoint, or re-appoint, the directors;
(iv)
to appoint, or re-appoint, the auditors and fix their remuneration
 Must be held within the State in which the company been registered.
Directors Meetings
Also known as Board Meetings. The directors have no individual rights
(subject Articles of Association) to act on behalf of the company. They
must act through the Board and their powers emanate from their collective
decisions.
Regulations affecting the conduct of Board meeting and their powers (and
limitations) are usually set out in their Articles of Association.
Quorum of Meetings
Refer to Articles of Association.
The principle:
At least two members must attend to constitute a quorum.
Refer:
i.
Re Salvage Engineers Ltd.
(1962) 28 MLJ 438
ii.
United Investment and Finance Ltd.
V
Tee Chin Yong & Ors.
(1967) 1 MLJ 31
E. HOLDING & SUBSIDIARY COMPANY
 Holding & subsidiary company has its own separate legal
entity.
 Meeting of Board of Directors of subsidiary company (in
which its Directors holding senior offices in holding company)
(parent company) do not represent parent company. They
attend meeting as directors of subsidiary company.
People’s Insurance Co. (M) Sdn. Bhd.
v
People’s Insurace Co. Ltd. & Ors.
(1986) 1 MLJ 68
The fact:
In 1978, the plaintif company, People’s Insurance Co. (M) Sdn. Bhd.
(PICMSB), was a subsidiary of the first defendants company, People’s
Insurance Co. Ltd. (PICL). On 12 Januari 1978, five directors of PICMSM
held meeting. One of the directors was the Managing Director of the
defendant (PICL), another one was General Manager and Director of the
defendant (PICL), and another one was Executive Director of the detendant
(PICL). During the meeting they passed a resolution that affected PICL.
The defendant (PICL) denied any liability.
Held
(1)
(2)
(3)
The parent (holding) and subsidiary companies are two separate legal
entities;
Officers of the parent company who are on the Board of the subsidiary
are not representatives of the parent company but sit at the Board
Meeting as directors and agent of the subsidiary;
A resolution of the Board of directors of the subsidiary does not bind
the parent company. The resolution did not constitute a contract
between the parties.
Cases Referred to:
Ebbow Vale Urban District Council
v
South Wates Traffic Area Licensing Authority
(1951)2 K.B. 366
Cohen L.J. :
“Under the ordinary rules of law, a parent company and subsidiary
company, even a 100 percent subsidiary company, are distint legal
entities…..”
Northern Countries Securities Ltd.
v
Jackson & Ateeples Ltd.
( (1974) 1 W.L.R. )
Walton J. :
“…… a director is an agent, who casts his vote to decide in what
manner his principal shall act through the collective agency of the
board of directors”
 Refer to
Companies Act 1965
i.
ii.
iii.
iv.
Section 5 – definition of subsidiary and holding company
Section 5A – definition of ultimate holding company
Section 5B – definition of wholly – owned subsidiary
Section 6 – when corporations deemed to be related to each
other