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suspect that the company is insolvent or will become so as a result of incurring such debt. Section 588G (1A) provides an operative table as to when debt is incurred in respect of debts concerning shares and dividends. These debts are included because they are related to the law relating to capital maintenance which aims to protect creditors and which is similar to the purpose of insolvent trading. Other than debts mentioned in subsection (1A) the courts have grappled with how to determine the stage at which debts are incurred. In Hussein v Good, 231 the court held that debt is incurred at the time when goods are delivered. In Standard Chartered Bank of Australia v Antico 232 , the court decided that whether a debt is incurred at the time a contract is entered into or at acceptance of delivery, would depend on substance and commercial reality. 233 Mandie J in Harrison v Lewis 234 stated that Although it is necessary to consider the terms of the relevant contract, the question when the debt is incurred within the meaning of the section does not depend on the strict legal analysis but turns on when, in substance and commercial reality, the company is exposed to the relevant liability. The reason for the emphasis upon substance and commercial reality lies in the need to ensure that the language is interpreted, or applied to the facts, in a way which serves the purpose, or fits the context, of a provision punishing insolvent trading and in a way which avoid absurd results. From the decision in the case, it is clear that the courts must interpret the section so as to avoid absurd and unjust results. In doing so, the courts are prepared to give an interpretation based on commercial reality in place of a strict construction 231 (1990) 1 ACSR 710, see also Taylor v Powell (1992) 11 ALR 374. 232 (1995) 131 ALR 1. 233 The same approach was also taken in Hawkins v Bank of China (1992) 7 ACSR 349. 234 (Unreported, Supreme Court of Victoria, Commercial and Equity Division, Mandie J, 23 February 2001). 282
of law of contract. The court must also focus, when interpreting, on the conduct and choice of the alleged insolvent company. 235 10.5.2.3 Insolvency The test of insolvency is provided under section 95A of the Corporations Act 2001 and is defined as the company‟s inability to pay its debt when it becomes due. 10.5.2.4 Reasonable Grounds to Suspect Insolvency Before a director can be held personally liable under the Act, it must be shown that there are reasonable grounds for directors to suspect that the company is insolvent at the time the debt is incurred or will become so as a result of incurring such debt. The word reasonable in the section shows that the test is objective and the director is judged by the standard appropriate to a director or manager of ordinary competence. 236 It has been suggested that in order to establish what is tantamount to „reasonable grounds to suspect,‟ the court should look at all the circumstances, and cases have indicated the court‟s tendency to look at the commercial reality of the company‟s financial status. 237 The decisions are also consistent with the UK and the New Zealand approach as discussed above. One important change made to section 588G is the usage of the word „suspect‟ instead of „expect‟ as in the previous section 556 which indicates a lower standard. 238 In Dunn v Shapowloff, 239 the court held that „expectation‟ within the meaning of the section goes beyond a 235 See also Hawkins v Bank of China (1992) 7 ACSR 349; Metropolitan Fire Services Pty Ltd v Miller (1997) 23 ACSR 609 at 704; see also judgement by Kitto J in Queensland Bacon Pty Ltd v Rees (1965) 115 CLR 266 at 301. 236 3M Australia Pty Ltd v Kemish (1986) 10 ACLR 371. 237 Coburn above n229 at 99; 3M Australia Pty Ltd v Kemish (1986) 10 ACLR 371; Metropolitan Fire Services Pty Ltd v Miller (1997) 23 ACSR 609. 238 Coburn above n229 at 100. 239 [1978] 3 ACLR 775 at 789-790. see also 3M Australia Pty Ltd v Kemish (1986) 10 ACLR 371 283
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http://researchcommons.waikato.ac.n
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ABSTRACT This study examines the le
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TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT i ACNOWL
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CHAPTER 5 THEORY OF THE CORPORATION
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7.3.3.3 Distribute its Capital to M
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10.2.5.1 Meaning of Insolvency 10.2
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10.6.2.2 Carrying on of any Busines
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CHAPTER 12 CONCLUSION AND RECOMMEND
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CLC Australian Company Law Cases CL
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Stanford LR Stanford Law Review Ste
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Facia Footwear Ltd (in administrati
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Re Avon Chambers Ltd [1978] 2 NZLR
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Re Produce Marketing Consortium Ltd
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Ultraframe (UK) v Fielding & Ors [2
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Mountford v Tasman Pacific Airlines
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Australia 3M Australia Pty Ltd v Ke
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Linton v Telnet Pty Ltd (1999) 30 A
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Malaysia Abdul Aziz bin Atan v Lada
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Perman Sdn Bhd & Ors v European Com
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Other Jurisdictions Singapore Rahj
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Companies Act 2006 Section 60(3)(c)
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Section 993 Section 993(2) Section
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Insolvency Act 1985 37, 70 Insolven
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Section 251 255 Part II Schedule 6
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Section 52(1) Section 52(2) Section
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Section 272(2) Section 272(2)(a) Se
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Section 385(4)(b) Section 385(4)(b)
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AUSTRALIA Absent Debtors Act (NSW)
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Section 206D(1)(b)(b)(ii) 374 secti
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Section 588FE(2)(a) Section 588FE(2
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section 588H (5) 241 Section 588H(6
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Section 598(3)(b) Section 598(3)(c)
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Bankruptcy Act 1967 MALAYSIA Sectio
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Section 130A(6) 391 Section 131 221
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Companies Regulation 1966 Regulatio
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CHAPTER 1 THE STRUCTURE OF THE THES
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A discussion of directors’ duties
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The far-reaching implication of cor
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2.2.1 The United Kingdom The common
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2.2.3 Australia Australia has been
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CHAPTER 3 LITERATURE SURVEY - AN OV
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shareholders, had failed to mitigat
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was mainly responsible for the chal
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3.3 Interests in the Company-Shareh
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contributed by the shareholders and
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Statutes have attempted to address
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how the matter should be dealt with
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4.2 Development of Corporate and In
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colonies. 14 The emergence of compa
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originally incorporated in order to
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usiness fraud. 42 In 1825, the Bubb
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Companies Act also reveals providin
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Companies Ordinance 1953 of Sabah a
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In 1977, the Cork Committee was app
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the Committee foresaw difficulty du
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operation and termination of a comp
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enforceability of security interest
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procedure, and dispensed with the o
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The creditors‟ protection princip
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shareholders and on personal bankru
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directors as trustees. 162 Members
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4.3.3 Development of Insolvency Leg
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In Australia, the government respon
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appointment of an administrative re
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the current statutes were not effic
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insist on protection to directors i
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and judgment to run the company. 21
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due to the difficulty in obtaining
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The Australian Law Commission in 19
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instead, enacted section 135 253 in
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4.5 Conclusion Malaysia, New Zealan
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CHAPTER 5: THE THEORY OF THE CORPOR
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needs someone to run it on its beha
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The implication of the decision is
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English decisions as guidance and t
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Shareholders who have to incur high
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interests of shareholders by maximi
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situation, directors have a duty to
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concluded purchasing goods from thi
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stipulates directors “may conside
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subsidiary and may continue to pros
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A holding company may use a subsidi
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section 187 of the Australian Corpo
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its holding company), act in a mann
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is just and equitable, to make an o
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Syndicates (NZ) Limited (in liq) 13
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a) Extent to which the Related Comp
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That the management did not differe
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equirement of insolvency and it doe
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The House of Lords in Woolfson v St
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subsidiary. Abdul Malik J held that
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defendant company. During a meeting
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Uniphoenix Corporation Bhd v Raymon
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justice alone is not sufficient; th
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lenders, employees, suppliers and c
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company and as the residual claiman
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The claim that shareholders‟ righ
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particularly lack of effective mana
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management of the companies. Credit
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players‟ interests intertwine wit
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important for directors to build lo
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Despite having included favourable
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at the intersection of a number of
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Directors must weigh any particular
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Directors will also enlist the serv
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Contractarians regard employees in
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terms to their liking, they either
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to boycott the company. 134 The com
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On the other hand, the duty owed to
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and experiences in order to dischar
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CHAPTER 7: A CONCEPTUAL ANALYSIS OF
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Economists divided real capital whi
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the transformation of shares as rea
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the company‟s ability to pay its
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purchase or will not become insolve
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available where special resolution
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The idea that maintaining share cap
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must be satisfied by the company in
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7.4 Conclusion The doctrine of capi
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and once a resolution is passed, to
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The term 'insolvency' has also long
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equivalent to medical negligence ca
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meaning of inability to pay debts.
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It is important to distinguish as t
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long as the accounts give true and
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current assets must be taken stock
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cases the presumption of insolvency
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It is interesting to note in reachi
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CHAPTER 9 THE COMMON LAW DUTIES OF
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Voluntary creditors can be divided
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are not personally liable for any l
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confidence, a trustee who has been
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interests of various parties in the
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overriding duty is to the sharehold
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to look at the directors‟ purpose
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9.3.3 Duty not to Fetter Discretion
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The decisions of the Federal Court
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case, directors should disclose the
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misconception that the case law and
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other reference as to the developme
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Australia and Malaysia have express
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out “ ...the judgment is in the b
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the prospect of success as well as
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judge adopted the principle of iden
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individual trading through a compan
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liability can be imposed on them wh
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liquidators when it is insolvent. C
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CHAPTER 10 DIRECTORS’ DUTY TO PRE
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Malaysia did not make any changes o
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interpretation of these provisions.
Page 301 and 302: sum of money that is owed or due.
Page 303 and 304: Hence, action can be brought agains
Page 305 and 306: Directors in Australia can be held
Page 307 and 308: to the director to prove that he or
Page 309 and 310: expect that the company was solvent
Page 311 and 312: In the case of Secretary of State f
Page 313 and 314: trading at a deficit. 64 In other w
Page 315 and 316: maintained in section 213 of the In
Page 317 and 318: not „a party‟ if he knew that m
Page 319 and 320: econcile the two judgments with one
Page 321 and 322: carrying it on (whether because of
Page 323 and 324: 10.3.1.3 For any other Fraudulent P
Page 325 and 326: company. In this aspect, section 21
Page 327 and 328: to Australia and New Zealand which
Page 329 and 330: even though it was evident from the
Page 331 and 332: the steps taken were with the aim o
Page 333 and 334: decisions. 150 Therefore, directors
Page 335 and 336: The Law Commission proposed that th
Page 337 and 338: to reform the law, namely to reduce
Page 339 and 340: A similar issue was raised in the E
Page 341 and 342: The decision was later upheld by th
Page 343 and 344: 10.4.3 Duty in relation Obligation
Page 345 and 346: fraudulent purpose.” 201 Although
Page 347 and 348: from the carrying on of the busines
Page 349 and 350: The first civil version of the inso
Page 351: amounts. 223 In Hussein v Good, 224
Page 355 and 356: defendant. 244 Therefore, a directo
Page 357 and 358: additional capital, as well as a re
Page 359 and 360: trading without any other action ta
Page 361 and 362: Another defect of the section is in
Page 363 and 364: argue that there are reasonable gro
Page 365 and 366: 10.6.2 Responsibility for Fraudulen
Page 367 and 368: Siow Yoon Keong v H Rosen Engineeri
Page 369 and 370: The courts have acknowledged that t
Page 371 and 372: The defendant in the case relying o
Page 373 and 374: To date, there have been few cases
Page 375 and 376: ability of the company to pay off i
Page 377 and 378: can be disqualified from taking par
Page 379 and 380: power to do so is an archaic equita
Page 381 and 382: is for a short period of time. This
Page 383 and 384: ights against the company are froze
Page 385 and 386: involves a situation where the comp
Page 387 and 388: 11.2.3 Winding-up Liquidation is a
Page 389 and 390: 11.2.3.1 Effects of Successful Avoi
Page 391 and 392: transactions, 59 the provisions cle
Page 393 and 394: 11.2.3.1.2 Recovery from Third Part
Page 395 and 396: ecover the proceeds of sale or to p
Page 397 and 398: order. 83 If the value of the asset
Page 399 and 400: Without this class action, the unse
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defraud, which implies their culpab
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also be enforced by the company. 11
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The court has the power if it think
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contravention or pecuniary penalty
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discretion to order the director‘
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Marketing Consortium (No 2) 147 cle
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discovered that the director had en
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compensatory. 163 Damages are asses
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of causation similar to torts in as
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ecause the court considered that it
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It should be noted that Re Cyona Di
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11.3.7.2.3 Duration The court also
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contribution order is made to the
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This is similar to the case of frau
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company is using funds belonging to
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Since section 304(1) originates fro
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11.3.8.2 Problems of Enforcement/Pr
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However, extracting promise of inde
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In relation to an action against a
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Investments Commission is entitled
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The position in Australia has clear
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Disqualification on the grounds of
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As a result of the recommendations
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exercised by the Registrar or the O
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actions which are committed with a
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The court has to deduce evidence of
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11.4.2.1 Standard of Proof Disquali
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11.4.2.2 Court’s Order Section 6
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of disqualification. 322 However, t
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mitigating factors considered by th
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11.5 Other Remedies 11.5.1 Mareva I
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for under the Act. 348 The action p
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of trust or breach of duty in relat
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CHAPTER 12 CONCLUSION AND RECOMMEND
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The separate legal personality conc
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deemed to be an alien concept to Br
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positive action to minimize losses
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insolvent. In Malaysia, there is no
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BIBLIOGRAPHY BOOKS and ARTICLES AHM
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BENNETT, Howard, 'Late Floating Cha
Page 483 and 484:
COBURN, Niall F, 'Insolvent Trading
Page 485 and 486:
http://ssrn.com/abstract=988944 at
Page 487 and 488:
FISHER, Gregory, LEE , Janet and JO
Page 489 and 490:
GUNASEKARA, Gehan and TOY, Alan, 'L
Page 491 and 492:
HOPT, Klaus J., 'Comparative Compan
Page 493 and 494:
KEAY, Andrew and Murray, Michael, '
Page 495 and 496:
McCHESNEY, Fred S., 'Economics, Law
Page 497 and 498:
OTTOLENGHI, S, 'From Peeping Behind
Page 499 and 500:
ROSS, Mike, Corporate Reconstructio
Page 501 and 502:
SCHWARTZ, Alan, ‗A Normative Theo
Page 503 and 504:
WALTERS, Adrian, 'Void Dispositions
Page 505 and 506:
WORTHINGTON, Sarah, 'Subrogation Cl
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REPLIES TO EXAMINERS APPENDIX 1 Pag
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Page 220-it is asserted that direct
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What are the criteria for determini
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addition it provides incentive for
Page 515 and 516:
See also Secretary of State for Tra
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Most jurisdictions in Australia hav
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