LAW5160

Shareholders rights and remedies 506 ( 6 points, SCA Band 3, 0.125 EFTSL)

Leader: Professor Elizabeth Boros

Offered:
Not offered in 2005.

Synopsis: This unit examines the way corporations are governed and the roles of directors and shareholders. While its primary focus will be on Australian law, comparisions will be drawn with the law in other countries, especially the UK, Canada and USA. Topics covered: (1)Corporate governance - the division of power between the board and the general meeting, the role of the board and the way boards are regulated; (2)Shareholders Remedies - self help remedies including institutional and individual shareholder activism, and customising the corporate constitution; and litigious remedies including oppression, winding up, common law limitations on majority voting power and the statutory derivative action.

Objectives: On completion of this subject, students should be able to: recognise and understand the common problems experienced by members of various types of company; advise a hypothetical client regarding strategies for preventing or remedying those problems without recourse to litigation; advise a hypothetical client regarding litigious remedies to combat those problems; understand likely trends for future development in the law relating to shareholders' rights and remedies; develop and demonstrate oral communication skills and skills of presentation of legal concepts, rules and argument in an interactive seminar context; and, develop and demonstrate legal research and writing and legal argument skills.

Assessment: Research assignment (4000 words): 50% + Supervised examination (60 minutes): 50% OR supervised examination(2 hours): 100%

Contact Hours: Three 1-hour lectures per week

Prerequisites: LAW1100 Legal Process OR LAW1101 Introduction to legal reasoning and LAW1102 Law in society, and LAW4171 Corporations Law