Every company is required to have a common seal that shall state the company’s name, engraved in legible characters.
At least one of the directors of a company is required to be resident in a member State of the European Economic Area (EEA). However having an EEA-resident alternate director does not satisfy this requirement. This will become an important requirement post Brexit.
A company may acquire its own shares from an existing shareholder by purchase, or in the case of redeemable shares, by redemption or purchase. A company may redeem or buyback its shares to one issued share and the 10% rule that was in the old Companies Act no longer applies.
With the implementation of the Companies Act 2014, everyone has had to upskill their knowledge of Company Law. At CLS we have been studying and dissecting the Act so that we can provide you and your firm with the necessary advice. Our team of ICSA qualified Chartered Secretaries have the experience and practical advice to answer your company law queries.
Every company is required to comply with the Companies Act and on an annual basis prepare and file financial statements and hold an AGM. Typically this is a service provided to companies by the Company Secretarial Advisors such as CLS Chartered Secretaries or the accountant or solicitors.
One of the most significant changes in the Companies Act 2014 was the introduction of a sole director company. This recognized the difficult position that companies had to appoint a second director who may play a very small or no role in the running of the company but are required to company with the Companies Act.
With the increase in economic activity particularly in the construction sector, banks, receivers and companies are discovering assets and property in companies that have been struck off the register. In order to transfer the assets out of the company or to sell the assets, the company must be restored to the register.
Companies miss the annual return filing deadline for various and legitimate reasons and the penalty for missing the filing deadline even by one day is very severe! A company that files late must will lose audit exemption for the following two financial years. This can have a significant impact on the viability of an SME company.
The Companies Act 2014 has introduced a universal process to authorise seven different restricted activities that would otherwise be prohibited.
The introduction of group audit exemption and the return to economic activity and company restructuring has led to an increase in group structures being created. More companies are being set up using personal holding companies or company restructuring or succession planning are all leading to an increase in the creation of groups. The Companies Act 2014 defines what a group is and we will examine one of the common ways of creating a group using a Golden Share.