Companies Act 1985

Last updated

Companies Act 1985
Act of Parliament
Royal Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom (variant 1, 1952-2022).svg
Long title An Act to consolidate the greater part of the Companies Acts
Citation 1985 c. 6
Dates
Royal assent 11 March 1985
Commencement 1 July 1985
Status: Amended
Text of statute as originally enacted
Revised text of statute as amended

The Companies Act 1985 (c. 6) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, enacted in 1985, which enabled companies to be formed by registration, and set out the responsibilities of companies, their directors and secretaries. It has largely been superseded by the Companies Act 2006.

Contents

The Act was a consolidation of various other pieces of company legislation, and was one component of the rules governing companies in England and Wales and in Scotland. A company will also be governed by its own memorandum and articles of association.

Table A, which lays out default articles of association, was not included in the body of the Act, as it had been in all previous Companies Acts. Instead, it was introduced by statutory instrument - the Companies (Tables A to F) Regulations 1985.

The Act applied only to companies incorporated under it, or under earlier Companies Acts. Sole traders, partnerships, limited liability partnerships etc. were not governed by the Act.

Company law throughout the United Kingdom is now governed by the Companies Act 2006, which received Royal Assent on 8 November 2006, and which was commenced in stages between then and 1 October 2009.

Certain aspects of the Companies Act 1985 have not been replaced by the Companies Act 2006, and they will remain in force:

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981</span> United Kingdom legislation

The Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 is an Act of Parliament in the United Kingdom implemented to comply with European Council Directive 79/409/EEC on the conservation of wild birds. In short, the act gives protection to native species, controls the release of non-native species, enhances the protection of Sites of Special Scientific Interest and builds upon the rights of way rules in the National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act 1949. The Act is split into 4 parts covering 74 sections; it also includes 17 schedules.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Statutory instrument (UK)</span> Type of secondary legislation in the United Kingdom

A statutory instrument (SI) is the principal form in which delegated legislation is made in Great Britain.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Obscene Publications Acts</span> United Kingdom legislation

Since 1857, a series of obscenity laws known as the Obscene Publications Acts have governed what can be published in England and Wales. The classic definition of criminal obscenity is if it "tends to deprave and corrupt," stated in 1868 by Lord Justice Cockburn, in Regina v. Hicklin, now known as the Hicklin test.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">England and Wales</span> Legal jurisdiction covering England and Wales

England and Wales is one of the three legal jurisdictions of the United Kingdom. It covers the constituent countries England and Wales and was formed by the Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542. The substantive law of the jurisdiction is English law.

Delegated legislation or secondary legislation in the United Kingdom is law that is not enacted by a legislative assembly such as the UK Parliament, but made by a government minister, a delegated person or an authorised body under powers given to them by an Act of Parliament.

Companies House is the executive agency of the British Government that maintains the register of companies, employs the company registrars and is responsible for incorporating all forms of companies in the United Kingdom.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Articles of association</span> Constitution of a corporation

In corporate governance, a company's articles of association is a document that, along with the memorandum of association forms the company's constitution. The AoA defines the responsibilities of the directors, the kind of business to be undertaken, and the means by which the shareholders exert control over the board of directors.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Devolved, reserved and excepted matters</span> UK public policy areas

In the United Kingdom, devolved matters are the areas of public policy where the Parliament of the United Kingdom has devolved its legislative power to the national legislatures of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, while reserved matters and excepted matters are the areas where the UK Parliament retains exclusive power to legislate.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Insolvency Act 1986</span> United Kingdom legislation

The Insolvency Act 1986 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that provides the legal platform for all matters relating to personal and corporate insolvency in the UK.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Limited Liability Partnerships Act 2000</span> United Kingdom legislation

The Limited Liability Partnerships Act 2000 (c.12) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which introduced the concept of the limited liability partnership into English and Scots law. It created an LLP as a body with legal personality separate from its members which is governed under a hybrid system of law partially from company law and partially from partnership law. Unlike normal partnerships the liability of members of an LLP on winding up is limited to the amount of capital they contributed to the LLP.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Scottish statutory instrument</span> Type of law in Scotland

A Scottish statutory instrument is subordinate legislation made by the Scottish Ministers, as well as subordinate legislation made by public bodies using powers provided to be exercisable by Scottish statutory instrument. SSIs are the main form of subordinate legislation in Scotland, being used by default to exercise powers delegated to the Scottish Ministers, the Lord Advocate, the High Court of Justiciary, the Court of Session, and the Queen-in-Council.

Table A in UK company law is the old name for the Model Articles or default form of articles of association for companies limited by shares incorporated either in England and Wales or in Scotland before 1 October 2009 where the incorporators do not explicitly choose to use a modified form. Table A was first introduced by the Joint Stock Companies Act 1856, and then under its current name of 'Table A' by the Companies Act 1862.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Companies Act 2006</span> British statute

The Companies Act 2006 is an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which forms the primary source of UK company law.

legislation.gov.uk, formerly known as the UK Statute Law Database, is the official Web-accessible database of the statute law of the United Kingdom, hosted by The National Archives. It contains all primary legislation in force since 1267 and all secondary legislation since 1823; it does not include legislation which was fully repealed prior to 1991. The contents have been revised to reflect legislative changes up to 2002, with material that has been amended since 2002 fully updated and searchable.

The ancient university governance structure in Scotland is the organisational system imposed by a series of Acts of Parliament called the Universities (Scotland) Acts 1858 to 1966. The Acts applied to what were termed the 'older universities': the University of St Andrews, the University of Glasgow, the University of Aberdeen and the University of Edinburgh. Together these four universities are commonly referred to as the ancient universities of Scotland. Whilst the Acts do not directly apply to the University of Dundee, the same governance structure was ordained for use by that institution in its royal charter.

In many countries, a statutory instrument is a form of delegated legislation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Act of Parliament (UK)</span> Primary legislation in the United Kingdom

An act of Parliament in the United Kingdom is primary legislation passed by the UK Parliament in Westminster, London.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LGBT rights in Scotland</span>

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender (LGBT) rights in Scotland are generally in line with the rest of the United Kingdom, which have evolved extensively over time and are now regarded as some of the most progressive in Europe. In both 2015 and 2016, Scotland was recognised as the "best country in Europe for LGBTI legal equality".

United Kingdom partnership law concerns the way that partnerships are formed or governed within the United Kingdom. Depending upon where the partnership was formed, English law, Scots law or Northern Irish law may apply in addition to statutes that create a framework across the UK. Under Scots law a partnership is a distinct legal entity and can borrow money from a bank in the name of the partnership, while English law only allows borrowing in the names of individual partners. Partnerships are a form of business association, which arises automatically when people carry on business with a view to a profit. Partners are jointly and severally liable, just as they own the property in common.

References