Date: Tuesday, April 10, 2007

Companies Act to be updated

After a lengthy consultation and review process lasting several years, the Companies Act has been extensively rewritten and received Royal Assent in at the end of November 2006. Many of the changes will be phased in over a graduated rollout period until October 2008, although some take effect almost immediately.

For example, from 31 December 2006 all companies must display their company registration number and registered name and address on websites, emails and other electronic correspondence. (Previously this was only a requirement for printed company correspondence and documentation.) There is no stipulation as to where on a company's website this information should appear ? it could be on the homepage, in a 'legal' or 'about us' section or included in a footer on all pages. With email correspondence, the most practical solution is to include the information in a footer attached to every email sent.