“… for the benefit of immunity from liability for its debts, those running the corporation may not use its formal identity to incur obligations recklessly, grossly negligently or fraudulently. If they do, they risk being made personally liable.” (Quoted in the judgment below) Particularly in hard times, it is not at all uncommon to find…
“All is fair in love and war…and business is war.” (Jasmine Kundra) When company directors are locked in dispute, one of them may be tempted to cut off the other’s access to emails and to the business server – a tactic likely to have immediate and serious consequences for the director thus cut off. Its…
“Creditors have better memories than debtors” (Benjamin Franklin) In these hard times of pandemic and economically destructive unrest, an unfortunate number of businesses face collapse, and many will opt for the “first aid for companies” option of business rescue. Creditors coming out of that process with a shortfall (only the luckiest creditors are likely…
“For him to be forced out of a career of choice to start working in a different field at a time when many businesses are closing down, retrenchments and lay-offs being commonplace and individual[s] doing everything possible to survive and cope with the health and economic devastating effects of the covid 19 pandemic, is plainly…
“…the mere exercise of majority shareholding voting rights does not amount to oppression…” (extract from judgment below) What happens when a company’s directors and shareholders fall out and cannot reconcile their differences? “Relief from oppressive or prejudicial conduct” If you should find yourself in such an unfortunate situation, our Companies Act offers you several possible…
“O Wonder! …O Brave New World” (Shakespeare) Regrettably the pandemic still shows no sign of going away any time soon, and the social distancing it has brought to our “new normal” leaves companies with a dilemma. How can you comply – safely and lawfully – with the Companies Act’s stringent requirements for the holding of…
“A stitch in time saves nine” (wise old proverb) The COVID-19 pandemic and the resultant lockdown have opened up new avenues of profit for some businesses, but they have also subjected many others to the spectre of business failure. Unfortunately we can expect the level of bankruptcies to surge for some time to come, and…
“Better safe than sorry” (wise old proverb) The COVID-19 pandemic and its ongoing economic fallout have left many businesses struggling with cash flow and even viability challenges. The result is that an increasing number of companies are either trading in insolvent circumstances, or in grave danger of doing so. Reckless trading and your risk of…
“…the default position is that an executive director or a senior employee may not carry on business activities which fall within the scope of his company’s business during the time when he serves as director or works as employee. The default position however changes on resignation.” (Extract from judgment below) What happens if relations between…
The CIPC (Companies and Intellectual Property Commission) has announced that its new “compliance checklist” requirement, voluntary until now, becomes mandatory for all companies and close corporations from 1 January 2020. You must complete the checklist before submitting your annual return. So firstly check when your due date for the annual return is – for companies you will have…