Pearse Trust Blog

In the UK, a director may be removed from their position by the company in certain circumstances.

In our introductory blog on Intellectual Property (IP) we explained the many benefits of proper management and protection of innovations. Nowhere is this more evident than in the technology industry, particularly in the area of mobile devices such as smartphones.

In our previous blog post we examined the case Prest (Appellant) v Petrodel Resources Limited & Others (Respondents). This case involved a claim for financial remedies following an acrimonious divorce between oil tycoon Michael Prest and his former wife, Yasmin Prest.

In recent times, there has been an increase in the number of directors who have found themselves in the High Court facing applications to restrict or disqualify them for various breaches of the Companies Acts.

As set out in our blog post on Ireland’s Favourable Taxation Regime For Start Up Companies, it is possible for a qualifying Irish company to shelter up to €960,000 of trading profits from Irish Corporation Tax (“CT”) over its first three years of trading. This is due to the very favourable tax treatment under Irish tax legislation of companies wishing to commence trading in Ireland. 

A shareholder is a legal or natural person holding one or more shares in a public or private company. In Ireland, certain rights and entitlements are conferred on shareholders by common law and statute (Companies Acts (1963–2012)). Many of these rights may be limited or extended by shareholders’ agreement or by the company’s memorandum and articles of association. The basic rights conferred on shareholders may be detailed as follows;

Right To Information

Shareholders have the right to inspect and obtain copies of information and documentation pertaining to the company, including the company registers, minutes of general meetings, memorandum and articles of association, financial statements, and auditors’ reports. Shareholders are also entitled to sight of the balance sheets of any subsidiaries of the company.

This blog looks at the recent jointly heard appeals of Futter v HMRC and Pitt v HMRC [2013] UKSC 26. Click here to read the full Supreme Court judgment. The cases were not connected but they turned on the same issue – namely in what circumstances a court may void decisions made by trustees under the rule in Re Hastings-Bass [1975] Ch 25, 40 (Hastings Bass). The Pitt case also raised issues as to the court’s jurisdiction to set aside a voluntary disposition on grounds of mistake. The UK Supreme Court rejected the rule in Hastings-Bass and clarified the court’s power to remedy the consequences of incorrect tax advice.

16 July 2013 saw the publication and approval of the long awaited Assisted Decision-Making (Capacity) Bill 2013 (“the Bill”). The aim of the Bill is to reform the long outdated law on mental capacity and decision-making by individuals whose capacity is impaired. It will replace the Regulation of Lunacy (Ireland) Act 1871 and the Marriage of Lunatics Act 1811 in their entirety.   

At the recent meeting of the OECD forum on tax administration, the requirement for increasing transparency and exchange of information was stressed by the heads of the tax administrations from 45 economies. The final communiqué details the following objectives and opinions of the forum on tax administration: