Product Description

all public companies are required by law to appoint a company secretary. public and private companies have to ensure that they comply with a number of statutory requirements, otherwise they may be criminally liable for defaults and errors can lead to civil penalties.

this fully revised new edition of the company secretary’s handbook is a comprehensive, jargon-free guide. up-to-date with the latest legislation in the new companies act, it covers the formation of companies, corporate governance and day-to-day administration, keeping the statutory records, annual routines and dissolution. it also includes useful addresses and examples of all the necessary official documentation. this practical handbook will help all companies comply with company law.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #53978 in Books
• Published on: 2008-10-03
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 182 pages

—Manager, February 2005
"The mystique is removed. The flow of information is managed well…can be recommended as a guide to good practice."

From the Publisher
Helen Ashton's guidance, based on her own day-to-day experience, will lead all company secretaries through the maze of administrative activities required of them, involving everything from accounts and personnel matters to intellectual property rights. Examples of the latest forms and relevant documentation are included.

About the Author

helen ashton ba, fcis, is a chartered secretary and the head of compliance of the company secretarial department at ernst & young.

Customer Reviews

Easily accessible reference guide
A potentially dry subject matter dealt with simply and effectively. This book won't nessessarily encourage you to become a company secretary (so many forms to fill out), but it will give you an insight and simple guide to the duties.

I would recommend this for any first time company secretary. Having read it myself it was an eye opener to what a person performing this role has and ought to do in order to ensure their company is well run and compliant with the law.

Keeping good company with this practical handbook
If you're a company secretary or contemplating appointing one, or eventually becoming one, or even possibly discharging this role without necessarily becoming one...then this book will, in the words of author Helen Ashton's fifth edition, it will help to prevent problems arising during the day-to-day administration of the company, and assist you in getting things right from the start, as even minor omissions can prove very costly!

The omissions referred to include, for example, the penalties for late filing of accounts at Companies House, which are now imposed automatically rather than on a discretionary basis and include repeat offender penalties. So it is really all about attention to detail to placate bureaucrats.

Published by The Sunday Times exemplary Business Development Series in association with Kogan Page, `The Company Secretary's Handbook' is precisely that! It's a guide to the main responsibilities that have traditionally been carried out by the company secretary together with core duties but it's not a heavy legal tome, thankfully. The book includes handy checklists which summarise the procedures necessary to put certain changes in place and to avoid omissions.

A good example can be found with the documents like the Companies House Forms, draft notices and resolutions which are included to help lighten the administrative burden.

Updated in 2008 with the implications of the new consolidated Companies Act incorporated where applicable, this practical guide covers the essentials including

* The formation of companies
* Corporate governance
* Day-to-day administration
* Keeping the statutory records
* Annual routines
* Dissolution

Whether or not you have access to a chartered secretary or in-house lawyer, you will find this Handbook invaluable. Not only is it ideal for directors and secretaries of private limited companies, it's also useful for, say, residents' associations using a limited company to hold the freehold of their property, or certainly, for learners studying for examinations set by their professional bodies where company law or secretarial practice is part of the course of study. I think it is also good for those thinking of Company Law as an undergraduate laws option.

However, as each company or organization is different, the 5th edition should not be used as a replacement for, or alternative to, professional advice from a chartered secretary or solicitor...just use it as though you were keeping good company with your competitors so you know what the current statutory duties and responsibilities are- thank you, Helen.