Should slimming down your corporate structure be one of your key objectives this year?

entry-meta

It is becoming increasingly common for the users of board secretary services such as those provided by London Registrars to need help with removing surplus companies through solvent liquidation or strike-off. This is often required when a cumbersome group structure is the product of merger or acquisition (M&A) activity.

There are clear advantages with a well-planned simplification process with a typical payback period of just 12 to 18 months. A solvent liquidation also presents an opportunity for both ongoing and looming issues to be addressed and resolved. Continue reading

First conviction of a care home and its responsible officers under the Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007 as a result of serious failings in health and safety

entry-meta

The Crown Prosecution Service reports that a care home in Nottingham was fined £300,000 for corporate manslaughter at Nottingham Crown Court recently. The conviction arose following the death of an 86 year old lady who suffered pneumonia, as a result of serious failings in the provision of personal care, nutrition and support provided by the home. According to reports, the post mortem confirmed that neglect had directly contributed to her death. Continue reading

MPs blame “catalogue of failures” for Kids Company demise

entry-meta

A salutary lesson will have been provided to both charities and those considering the use of company secretarial services by the report released by MPs in early February on the circumstances that led to the collapse of the charity Kids Company.

Kids Company’s closure in August followed controversy over the management and finances of the charity founded by Camila Batmanghelidjh in 1996. Now, the Commons Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee (PACAC) has released the results of its inquiry, describing the charity’s collapse as the result of an “extraordinary catalogue of errors”. Continue reading

New Sentencing Guidelines preceded by highest ever UK fine for corporate manslaughter

entry-meta

The death of a crane driver has led to the conviction of corporate manslaughter for a mobile crane hire company, making it the first in the UK to suffer such ignominy. Despite the verdict being handed down before the introduction of new, tougher Sentencing Guidelines this month, the level of the fine sends out a strong message to all UK organisations that may need to invest further in risk and compliance services. Continue reading

Why it isn’t always a good idea to ‘buy back’

entry-meta

In 2014, a $1 billion share buyback programme was initiated by Glencore plc, the biggest mining company in the world that has also strong interests in coal, copper and commodities. This move typified an ongoing trend of companies acquiring their own shares that has proved especially prevalent in the United States, with 2014 seeing a more than 50% rise in the use of company buybacks. Continue reading

Lord Davies sets 2020 target of one-third female FTSE 350 boards

entry-meta

Lord Davies’ final summary report on increasing the representation of women on the boards of FTSE companies will make interesting reading for many of those organisations conducting a corporate governance review or taking advantage of any of London Registrars’ other governance and compliance services.

Women on boards: 5 year summary was issued on 29th October 2015, with the Government fully supporting all of its recommendations – including a new target for the proportion of women on the boards of the UK’s 350 biggest companies (the FTSE 350) to reach 33% by 2020. This would amount to about 350 more women board members. Continue reading

Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007

entry-meta

Introduction

The Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007 (‘the Act’), which came into force in April 2008, was a landmark in law which for the first time allowed the authorities to prosecute organisations where a corporate management failing has led to the death of an individual, resulting from a breach of Health and Safety at Work. Continue reading