Description

Company Law

Company Law is intended to equip the candidate with knowledge, skills and attitudes that will enable him/her to apply and comply with the provisions of Company Law in relevant circumstances and environments and further to demonstrate knowledge of the law and regulations governing corporate entities and ensure compliance in practice.

LEARNING OUTCOMES

A candidate who passes this paper should be able to:

• Apply legal principles relating to formation of companies
• Evaluate the rights and obligations of members and shareholders
• Comply with the legal principles governing liquidation of corporates
• Comply with the legal principles governing restructuring of companies
• Comply with the legal principles relating to companies incorporated outside the country
• Comply with the legal requirements relating to the financing

CONTENT

1. Nature and classification of companies
   • Nature and characteristics of a company
   • Types of companies
   • Principle of legal personality and veil of incorporation
   • Distinction between companies and other forms of business associations sole proprietorships, partnerships and cooperative

2.                   Formation of companies

• Promoters and pre-incorporation contracts and deeds.
• Process and drafting documents required to form a
• Rules relating to company names
• Memorandum and articles of association
• Certificate of incorporation
• Effects of incorporation
• Execution of a company’s documents
• Alteration of status of companies

3.                   Membership of a company

• Acquisition of membership
• Register of members
• Rights and liabilities of members
• Cessation of membership
• Register of a company’s beneficial owners
• Derivative

4.                   Shares

• Classes of shares
• Variation of class rights
• Share certificates
• Issue and allotment
• Transfer and transmission
• Transfer of shares under central depository system
• Mortgaging and charging of shares

5.                   Share capital

• Meaning and types of share capital
• Raising of share capital
• Prospectus/information memorandum
• Maintenance of capital
• Alteration and Consolidation of share capital
• Dividends

6.                   Debt capital

• Borrowing powers of a company
• Company assets that can secure a company’s borrowings
• Company debentures
• Company charges
• Meetings and resolutions in respect of debt capital
• Registration of charges
• Remedies for debenture holders

7.                   Company meetings

• Nature and classification of company meetings
• Types of company meetings held to execute various functions of company meetings
• Methods of holding company meetings
• Essentials of a valid physical, virtual and hybrid meeting Voting
• Resolutions
• Drafting resolutions
• Protection of minority shareholders

8.                   Company Directors

• Qualifications, appointment and disqualification
• Powers and duties of directors
• Removal and vacation of office
• Register of directors
• Remuneration of directors
• Loans to directors
• Compensation for loss of office
• Disclosure of director’s interest in contracts
• The rule in Turquand’s case/Indoor Management rule
• Insider dealing

9.                   The Company Secretary

• Qualification, appointment and removal
• Powers and duties of the Company Secretary
• Liability of the Company Secretary
• Register of Secretaries

10.               Auditors

• Qualification, appointment and removal
• Remuneration of auditors
• Powers and duties
• Rights and liabilities

11.               Company accounts

• Books of accounts
• Form and content of accounts
• Group accounts
• Director’s report

12.               Audit of Company Accounts

• Auditor’s report
• Annual returns

13.            Company Investigation

• Investigation of company affairs
• Appointment and powers of inspectors
• Inspector’s report

14.               Corporate restructuring

• Need for restructuring
• Mergers
• Post – merger reorganisation of a company’s share capital
• Takeovers and acquisitions
• Mergers and divisions of public companies
• Compromises, arrangements, reconstructions and amalgamations

15.            Receivership, Administration, Liquidation and Dissolution of companies

• Meaning of receivership, administration and dissolution
• Appointment and vacation of office by the Official Receiver
• Powers and duties of a receiver
• Termination of receivership
• Appointment of an administrator
• Functions and powers of an administrator
• Process of administration
• Termination of appointment and replacement of administrators
• Company voluntary arrangements
• Meaning of liquidation
• Types of liquidation
• Appointment, powers and duties of liquidators
• Discharge of liquidators
• Distribution of assets and dissolution of companies

16.               Foreign Companies

• Process of registering a company
• Certificate of registration
• Power to hold land
• Registration of charges
• Accounts of foreign companies
• Service of process and notices on foreign companies
• Returns
• Penalties
• Cessation of business