Come join us for a complimentary session with Dr. Andrew Godwin on "Practice, Academia, and Law Reform – Weaving the Threads Together" on 7 August 2024. Registration starts at 5:00pm, seminar at 5:30pm, and networking refreshments at 6:30pm, held at Stamford 1 & 2, Singapore Academy of Law. Discover insights from Dr. Godwin's 15 years in private practice, 15 years in academia, and 3.5 years in law reform work. Click here Practice, Academia and Law Reform – Weaving the Threads Together (lawnet.com) for more details.

For more information on Techlaw.Fest 2024, click here.

(1) Seminar: Developments in Corporate Law,
(2) Printed Book: Corporate Law (2nd Edition) Book

(1) Seminar: Developments in Corporate Law, 28 August 2024 (4pm - 6pm)

Topics that will be discussed in the seminar include:

i)  Directors’ duties to creditors
The Court of Appeal in Foo Kian Beng v OP3 International Pte Ltd [2024] SGCA 10 laid down a two-stage approach which requires the court to first objectively determine which of three financial stages the company was in at the material time and then thereafter to examine the subjective intentions of the director to determine if he had acted in what he considered to be the best interests of the company.

ii) Finance assistance prohibition
The most important change introduced by the Companies (Amendment) Act 2014 was the complete removal of the financial assistance prohibition in relation to private companies that are not subsidiaries of a public parent. The Steering Committee initially toyed with the idea of abolishing financial assistance in its entirety and leaving the regulation of the factual matrix usually involved in the financial assistance prohibition to the application of directors’ duties alone in the context of all companies. However, after obtaining feedback during its consultation process, it recommended in June 2011 that section 76(1) of the Companies Act be abrogated only in relation to most private companies, which is fairly consistent with the position in the UK.

(2) Printed Book:  Corporate Law (2nd Edition) Book

This second edition of Corporate Law incorporates the many changes recommended by the Companies Act Working Group (“CAWG”) in May 2019. Some of them were introduced by the Companies, Business Trusts and Other Bodies (Miscellaneous Amendments) Act 2023 (Act 17 of 2023). Many of these involved the digital medium, which the COVID-19 pandemic showed that businesses required, in terms of notices, meetings, voting and communication generally. Going forward, the CAWG recognised that the Companies Act 1967 should remain as technologically neutral as possible. Continuing with the theme in the first edition, we agree that legislation should, as far as possible, permit innovation and development through changes to the corporate constitution. Even if most of the Act’s provisions are mandatory as the CAWG observed, the Act is not exhaustive of how businesses can be structured. This is perhaps seen most clearly in the new forms of fundraising that have arisen outside the regulated use of shares and debentures. The courts have led the way in recognising digital assets as forms of personal property, giving investors confidence to invest in them.
 
Through extensive case law analysis, this book offers invaluable insights into the changing landscape of corporate law in Singapore. It discusses judicial precedents which have significantly contributed to the development of areas of corporate law in Singapore. Explored within the pages of this book are areas including, but not limited to (a) the extent of membership rights; (b) veil piercing; (c) the permissibility of boards in approving conflict transactions carried out by their directors; (d) “core” fiduciary duties; (e) shareholder oppression in rights issues and generally in relation to corporate wrongs; (f) the no‑reflective loss principle; (g) capital maintenance and share repurchases; (h) floating charges and charge registration; and (i) liquidation generally and in the context of the restructuring of business trusts and partnerships.

Please note that collection of book will be on-site on the day of the seminar. 

Member's Price: $137.50 (before GST)

For non-members who would like to attend the event, please click here for details.