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Content Type:
CDM Article
01 Feb 2012
Steven Cole is the author of a white paper, Mind the Expectation Gap, which canvasses the reasons why an “expectation gap” has arisen between what directors do and what the public and law expect from them.
Non-executive directors (NEDs) play a vital role in the prudential governance of cor...
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Content Type:
CDM Article
01 Jul 2010
Professor Bob Baxt
reviews a recent case that provides new insights into the meaning of “shadow directors”.
A legal spotlight on shadow directors
The Corporations Act 2001 regulates and governs the activities of formally appointed directors and officers of companies over a wide ra...
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Content Type:
CDM Article
01 Jul 2010
A series of reform proposals could shake up the superannuation industry.
Janine Mace
details those of interest to directors.
A super shake up
Likely super reforms
A higher Superannuation Guarantee rate could affect remuneration practices
Changes in default fund rules could affect c...
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Content Type:
CDM Article
01 Jun 2010
Given the nature of their roles, non-executive directors cannot know everything about an organisation and are heavily dependent on management for information.
Domini Stuart
investigates how directors can improve this information flow.
Removing the chinks from the informati...
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Content Type:
CDM Article
01 Jun 2010
Gabrielle Upton
reports on a recent panel discussion that focused on what will be expected of directors under new work health and safety laws.
Taking the lead in workplace safety
In December 2009, the Workplace Relations Ministers Council endorsed the Model Work Health and Safety Bil...
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Content Type:
CDM Article
01 Jun 2010
Professor Bob Baxt
examines a recent appeals case that suggests directors may owe duties to individual shareholders in certain circumstances.
A duty to one or all
A basic (and some would say trite) rule of company law is that directors owe their duty to the company, the company being the sh...
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Content Type:
CDM Article
01 May 2010
Why the
Company Directors Course
and its update will help you stay in touch and ahead of the pack.
Establishing director knowledge
The Company Directors Course is a comprehensive and credible learning program for directors. Our flagship program encompasses current thinking and re...
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Content Type:
CDM Article
01 May 2010
Professor Bob Baxt
reviews a recent appeals ruling that provides directors with a victory when it comes to seeking reimbursement for legal costs.
Getting legal costs back
Last year, in this column (Company Director, April 2009), we discussed the decision by Justice Flick in Motor Tra...
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Content Type:
CDM Article
01 May 2010
Former Commonwealth Bank of Australia chairman John Schubert talks to
Domini Stuart
about the challenges of being a director in Australia, board diversity and climate change.
Q&A with John Schubert
When Dr John Schubert FAICD left Melbourne University with a doctorate in chem...
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Content Type:
CDM Article
01 Apr 2010
Gabrielle Upton
explains why a broad business judgement rule for directors could create better outcomes for companies in financial difficulty as well as their shareholders and creditors.
Safe harbour from insolvent seas
Laws to protect stakeholders in the event of insolvent trading are v...
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Content Type:
CDM Article
01 Mar 2010
An outline of some of the issues recently addressed by AICD’s Policy and Advocacy team, committees and taskforces.
Policy Update
The past few months have been a productive period for the Policy and Advocacy team, which has largely focused on phoenix trading, red tape reduction measures, ins...
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Content Type:
CDM Article
01 Feb 2010
The global financial crisis brought Australia’s insolvency laws back into the spotlight. Towards the end of last year, AICD and PPB hosted a discussion on whether these laws were adequate and why urgent reform was required.
Viewpoint
Australian businesses enjoyed a period of sustained economi...
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Content Type:
CDM Article
01 Feb 2010
As society re-appraises the risks posed by limited liability corporations,
Steven Cole
stresses the importance of balancing the liability burden faced by directors.
Balancing the director liability burden
In 1911, Nicholas Murray Butler, president of Columbia University, said...
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Content Type:
CDM Article
01 Feb 2010
Professor Bob Baxt
argues that it is time for action on a revised statutory business judgement rule, even though ASIC lost the
Rich
case.
Time for a revised business judgement rule
The decision of Justice Austin in ASIC v Rich and Anor (2009) NSWSC 1229 saw the Australian Secu...
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Content Type:
CDM Article
01 Dec 2009
Professor Bob Baxt
argues that MINCO’s recently released principles governing director liability are a step in the right direction, but do not go far enough.
Not far enough
The announcement on 6 November by the Minister for Corporate Law Chris Bowen that the Ministerial Council for Corpo...
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Content Type:
CDM Article
01 Nov 2009
Michael Kingston
provides some recent examples of how ASIC has used enforcement to promote good governance.
Enforcing good governance
The Australia Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) and AICD share a similar goal – to achieve the highest standards of governance and directorship...
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Content Type:
CDM Article
01 Nov 2009
States’ poor report card
Most Australian states have failed a new test that measures their “business-friendliness” from a director liability standpoint.
AICD’s new Boardroom Burden Report Card examined each state and territory’s legal regime to determine how much it imposes liability on directors, ...
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Content Type:
CDM Article
01 Nov 2009
At the end of September, AICD and Teradata hosted a discussion on how directors can ensure they get good quality information that facilitates effective boardroom decision-making.
Effective boardroom information
Boards make vital decisions every day, from whether a company is a going concern an...
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Content Type:
CDM Article
01 Nov 2009
Directorship in the spotlight
As we come closer to the Christmas and New Year holiday period, we remain full steam ahead at AICD.
Over the past two months, I have been fortunate to have had the chance to present to a wide range of internal and external audiences on a number of issues that are relev...
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Content Type:
CDM Article
01 Oct 2009
Look before you leap
Directors cannot afford to get their D&O cover wrong, especially in the current economic climate. But Craig Claughton, NSW manager of the Financial and Professional Services Practice at Marsh, says they often fail to invest enough time in understanding how a D&O policy ...