Companies Act 2016

How to Qualify as a Liquidator in Malaysia

Lee Shih5 Comments

Qualified persons can now apply to be licensed as liquidators, or also known as insolvency practitioners, in Malaysia. This allows for the licence holder to take on appointments as: (i) liquidator; (ii) receiver or receiver and manager; (iii) judicial manager; and (iv) a nominee in a corporate voluntary arrangement.

The Accountant General of Malaysia recently issued its Guidelines for Qualification as Liquidator under the Companies Act 2016 (CA 2016) dated 21 January 2020 (only available in the Malay language). This now allows for qualified persons to apply for a liquidator licence under the CA 2016.

I write about the past qualification route for liquidators under the Companies Act 1965 (CA 1965) and this new qualification regime under the CA 2016. Continue reading →

Case Update: Golden Plus Decision – Removal of Directors under the Companies Act 2016

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In the Golden Plus Holdings decision, the High Court sets out give important points relating to the removal of directors under the Companies Act 2016 (CA 2016).  You can read the grounds of judgment dated 14 January 2020.

The decision deals with the issues relating to requisitioning an EGM, the unavailability of some directors to attend a Board meeting, whether there can be first a requisition and then a convening of an EGM, the special notice requirement for removal of a director, and whether there can be improper motives to invalidate the removal of a director.

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Companies Amendment Act 2019 comes into force on 15 January 2020

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The Companies (Amendment) Act 2019 will now come into force on 15 January 2020. This makes the first set of amendments to the Companies Act 2016.

The enforcement date was gazetted through P.U. (B) 16/2020. On the same date of 15 January 2020, the Companies (Company Auditor and Liquidator Fees) Regulations 2020 will also come into force (see P.U. (A) 9/2020).

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Top 5 Restructuring & Insolvency Cases in Malaysia for 2019

Lee Shih2 Comments

Earlier, I covered the top five Malaysian company law cases for 2019. To complete the series, I now feature the top five restructuring and insolvency cases in Malaysia for 2019.

In 2019, we saw further developments interpreting the insolvency-related provisions of the Companies Act 2016 (CA 2016). I have selected these case due to the interesting and novel points of law.

The cases featured below range from judicial management, schemes of arrangement and the receiver’s ability to have continued supply of utilities. Continue reading →

Top 5 Company Law Cases in Malaysia for 2019

Lee Shih4 Comments

As 2019 draws to a close, I wanted to feature five interesting Malaysian company law cases during the year.

I have drawn from Malaysian decisions that advanced interesting points of law and has helped to develop company law and also the interpretation of the Companies Act 2016 (CA 2016). These cases range from the CEO’s fiduciary duty, the doctrine of a universal successor entity, and the chairman’s adjournment of general meetings.

This post is part of a 2019 trilogy that also features restructuring & insolvency cases, and arbitration cases.

I set out the five cases below. Continue reading →

Spoke on BFM: Unmasking Corporate Anonymity – Beneficial Ownership

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On 16 December 2019, I spoke live on BFM’s Morning Run on the Companies Commission of Malaysia proposed guidelines on the beneficial ownership reporting framework. I had written earlier about beneficial ownership in Malaysia and also 8 observations I had on the proposed beneficial ownership guidelines.

You can access the podcast here (you may be required to do a free registration on the BFM website). Continue reading →