Company Law globalization Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 5000 words

Company Law globalization - Essay Example But significant parts are outmoded or have become redundant and they are enshrined in law that is often unnecessarily complicated and inaccessible." In today's world, global companies are able to control more human and economic resources than many nation states. The economic influence of these firms goes far beyond stock markets; these organisations have a genuine impact on people's lives, as the case of Enron illustrated in the U.S. With this perspective, questions like, who governs corporations and how are top executives appointed, or is economic globalisation changing corporate governance practices, are worth asking. Setting up and running a company in the UK is governed by the Companies Act 1985, but many other set of laws affect company operating procedures. These include the Sale of Goods Act 1979 that regulates the sale of any item; the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 which regulates the minimum standards of health and safety for employees; and the Employers' Liability (Compulsory Insurance) Act 1969 which requires employers to have insurance against physical injury and disease sustained by employees. Likewise, there are two types of companies: Private Company - this is usually a small or a family-run business. ... Public Company - must have a minimum capital of 50,000, offer shares to the public, and must have at least two directors or members. They must include "plc" (Public Limited Company) in the registered company name. The law characteristically views a company as a fictional person, a legal person, or a moral person (as opposed to a natural person). Under such tenet, traditionally seen as a legal fiction, a corporation enjoys many of the rights and obligations of individual persons, such as the ability to own property, sign binding contracts, pay taxes, have certain constitutional rights, and otherwise participate in society. It must be noted that corporations do not possess all the rights appertaining to individuals, for instance, in most jurisdictions, a corporation cannot become a citizen, nor vote. On the other hand, corporations often have rights not granted to individuals, such as treaty rights or as an example, the right to stockpile restricted pharmaceuticals without a prescription (Cooke, 1950). In common law nations, standard statement of this theory is found in Lennard's Carrying Co Ltd v Asiatic Petroleum Co Ltd [1915] AC 705, where Lord Haldane stated: "My Lords, a corporation is an abstraction. It has no mind of its own any more than it has a body of its own; its active and directing will must consequently be sought in the person of somebody who is really the directing mind and will of the corporation, the very ego and centre of the personality of the corporation." Salient features of incorporation include: Limited liability - Unlike in a partnership or sole proprietorship, members of a modern business corporation have "limited" liability for the corporation's debts and obligations (this is