The domestic legal function has gained in importance. In the past, the General Counsel could be seen primarily as a channel to external professional advice. However, the recent recession, the cost and perceived low added value of some activities provided by external consultants, combined with the ease of technology-assisted outsourcing, have changed the balance of the relationship. In Sri Lanka, the Companies Act No. 07 of 2007 requires every registered company to have a corporate secretary. A Corporate Secretary must be registered with the Department of the Registrar of Companies to serve as Corporate Secretary. suitable for the function of secretary; In South Africa, all state-owned and state-owned enterprises must appoint a corporate secretary. The roles and responsibilities of the Company Secretary are set out in the Companies Act No. 71 of 2008. For publicly traded companies, these roles were clarified and expanded by the King IV Report. [8] In addition, not-for-profit corporations that have voluntarily adopted the “enhancing accountability and transparency” provisions of the Companies Act must appoint a corporate secretary whose role is comparable to that of a public company. [9] As of 8 April 2008, a private company in the UK is no longer required by law to have a general secretary, unless otherwise provided in the company`s articles of association. [5] If a private corporation does not have a corporate secretary, the secretarial duties and responsibilities of the corporation are the responsibility of the directors of the corporation.
With the increase in the number of social enterprises and not-for-profit enterprises, there is often a demand for a corporate secretary in the non-profit and municipal sectors, as well as for ordinary private commercial enterprises. A public limited company in the UK must always have an officially appointed company secretary. [6] Lawyers are traditionally hired for their legal expertise – their knowledge of rules, governance and regulations, their negotiation skills, their ability to navigate. Given the important role that the Secretary General plays in business, PLCs and large companies require that the Secretary General be properly trained, experienced and professionally qualified for these tasks. Corporate Secretaries are the primary source of business advice, from legal advice on conflicts of interest, accounting advice on financial reporting, strategy development and business planning. NM: In addition to studying law, my interest was also in using my corporate secretary degree – and if you want to use that degree, you have to work in a company. I wasn`t so inclined to work in a law firm on the litigation side because I come from a family of entrepreneurs. That`s why I wanted to work closer to the company, and that`s why I think I chose the corporate division rather than the law firm.
Corporate secretaries from all sectors have high-level responsibilities, including governance structures and mechanisms, conducting the business in an organization`s regulatory environment, board, shareholder and trust meetings, complying with legal, regulatory and listed requirements, training and induction of non-officers and trustees, contacts with regulators and external bodies, reports and circulars to Shareholders/Trustees, administration of benefits such as pension and employee stock ownership plans, administration and organization of insurance, contract negotiations, risk management, asset management and organization, and interpretation of financial accounts. GC: How does your team fit into Signify`s legal team globally? A company secretary is a senior position in a private sector company or public sector organization. Also known as Chief Compliance Officer, this is one of the positions that is part of a company`s key management (which typically includes the CEO and CFO). In large publicly traded U.S. and Canadian companies, a corporate secretary is usually appointed corporate secretary. A Corporate Secretary is responsible for the effective management of a company, including compliance with legal and regulatory requirements and the implementation of Board resolutions. [1] As a legal function going forward, over the next couple of years, I think we need to be more agile, focus more on where we add value to the organization and where we need to focus more. I think those are the two or three things that we really need to update as a legal function if we want to support the company in its future transformation. NM: The biggest challenge in my role is dealing with several issues in the areas of legal compliance and governance. We have a very light team: there are three people including me and we have to manage a company of more than 500 million euros.
India is Signify`s fourth largest market in the world. We tend to look for the complex, but there are also little things at some point. I could deal with multiple regulators, whether it`s labour laws, technology laws, competition law or complex negotiations or litigation – civil or criminal – and, of course, compliance. With a small, lean team, you have to take care of so many things at all times and be kept abreast of everything that is happening in the areas of corporate, technology and digital law. In Singapore, Section 171(3) of the Companies Act requires each company to have a corporate secretary, who must be resident in Singapore. The secretary must be appointed within the first 6 months of incorporation. If the company has only one director, he or she may not be the general secretary. The responsibilities of the Secretary General are as follows: We are fully integrated into the global legal team as the legal team is very closely linked worldwide. They interact often and you can share problems with them and you can also share knowledge with them. Knowledge sharing is an integral part of the culture of the legal function, and the reciprocal exploitation of each other`s benefits and meaning is also another key feature of the function.
Last year, I did a complex project in Morocco from India and managed this contract on the legal side, so I think geography is not a limitation at the moment. A legal team can be anywhere, and they can also do things for other countries. In many countries, private companies are traditionally required by law to appoint a person as secretary of the company, and this person will usually also be a senior member of the board of directors. [ref. Many corporate secretaries of publicly traded North American companies are lawyers, and some act as general counsel to their companies. While this can be helpful in the performance of their duties, it can also lead to confusion about privilege-protected legal advice and what business advice is. [2] Another project we do basically focuses on the things we can stop and focuses on the things that add value. I think these things are very important in the future because of limited resources and are more focused on evolving the company`s portfolio. GC: Are these technology initiatives being used elsewhere in Signify`s global legal team, or is this something you`ve led from India? Authorized secretaries are employed as chairmen, directors and non-executive directors, as well as officers and general secretaries.
