77947 Companies and Securities Law
6cp PostgraduateSubject coordinator: S Riley
This subject explores company law in its applied context, addressing the needs of business practitioners and professionals such as accountants. The subject comprises four main sections. The first examines the principal provisions affecting the formation and operation of companies. The second concerns the main roles, responsibilities and duties of corporate directors, officers and other employees. The third section considers the protection of shareholders including in the process of corporate fundraising through the issue of new share capital; the section also looks at measures to protect creditors through provisions concerning the maintenance of share capital. The final section contains an introduction to securities regulation and deals with other major events in the corporate lifecycle such as external administration and takeovers.
Specific topics covered in the subject include:
- the framework of Australian corporations legislation and the role of the Australian Securities and Investments Commission
- the process of company registration and its consequences; the range of legal forms of association available for the conduct of business enterprise
- the corporate constitution
- the company's liability in contract and under criminal law
- the allocation of responsibility between shareholders, directors and company officers
- directors' and officers' duties and liabilities
- minority shareholder protection and remedies
- the regulation of major equity capital transactions such as capital reductions, share buy-backs and dividend payments
- an introduction to the legal structure of securities market regulation
- corporate fundraising – prospectus disclosure obligations and liabilities
- external administration of failing companies – voluntary administration, receivership, liquidation and winding up
- an introduction to takeovers law.
The subject seeks to:
- provide an overview of corporate law in Australia
- highlight the roles, responsibilities and duties of key personnel involved in corporations
- develop skills in identifying, analysing and understanding corporate legal problems, and
- build an appreciation of the commercial implications of the legal framework in which corporations operate.
2007 contribution for post-2004 Commonwealth-supported students: $1,041.62
2007 amount for undergraduate domestic fee-paying students: $2,472.00
Subject EFTSL: 0.125
Note: The above fees are applicable in 2007 for Commonwealth-supported students who commenced after 2004 and domestic fee-paying undergraduate students only. Pre-2005 Commonwealth-supported students should consult the
Student contribution charges for Commonwealth supported students webpage.
Not all students are eligible for Commonwealth supported places, and not all subjects are available to Commonwealth supported students. Domestic fee-paying students and international students should refer to the
Fees webpage.
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