Companies (Miscellaneous Provisions) (Covid-19) Act 2020: Annual General Meetings

PUBLISHED: 4th September 2020

The Companies (Miscellaneous Provisions) (Covid-19) Act 2020 was signed into law on 1 August 2020 and will remain operative for the Interim Period.

The Act proposes to address certain compliance challenges being faced by companies due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Section 174A of the Act provides that a company is not obliged, during the interim period to hold an annual general meeting during the period required under the Companies Act 2014 or the company’s constitution, provided that the meeting is held by 31 December 2020 at the latest.

This section also expressly provides that a general meeting of a company’s members may be held wholly or partly by the use of electronic communications technology, provided those entitled to attend have a reasonable opportunity to participate, including the provision of a mechanism for casting votes (either before or during the meeting).  Companies should ensure that any electronic communications used by attendees at meetings is secure, and that the platform used minimises the risk of data corruption and/or unauthorised access.

If you require assistance with Company Secretarial matters throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, our highly experienced Company Secretarial Team is on hand to assist.  Please contact a member of our team:

James Carolan at jcarolan@lkshields.ie

Colm Hanley at chanley@lkshields.ie

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