Keeping Good Companies articles from April 2005

Keeping Good Companies archives from April 2005

Governance professionals come of age: the results of the Ambition/CSA Working Practices Survey 2005.
April 1, 2005... Chartered Secretaries Australia and specialist finance and technology recruitment group Ambition surveyed CSA members recently with 15 questions on the working practices of modern governance professionals in Australia. Apart from the...

Company Secretaries and board information.(Key Issues: APPLIED CORPORATE GOVERNANCE)
April 1, 2005... An increased focus on boards and corporate governance in general has led to greater responsibilities for directors and an appreciation of the exposures inherent in their specialist roles. Companies are also realising that good governance...

There's nothing mysterious about good governance.(Key Issues: COMPANY SECRETARY)
April 1, 2005... There is ample evidence that many of the world's governments and corporate boards are searching vigorously for what they assume is an elusive formula that will magically deliver new and improved levels of good governance. This search for a...

Criminal sanctions for cartel behaviour.(Professional Updates: COMPETITION LAW)(Trade Practices Act 1974)(services of Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions)
April 1, 2005... The Federal Government has announced that it will amend the Trade Practices Act 1974 (TPA) to introduce criminal penalties for serious cartel conduct. Although the new legislation has not yet been released, the government has revealed some...

The new agenda: recent developments in AGMs.(Professional Updates: CORPORATE LAW)
April 1, 2005... Recent changes to the law have transformed the way Company Secretaries can hold general meetings. Amendments to the Corporations Act 2001 during 2004 by the Corporate Law Economic Reform Program (Audit Reform and Corporate Disclosure) Act 2004...

Shareholders call for a weather forecast.(Professional Updates: ENVIRONMENT LAW)(European Union Emissions Trading Scheme (EUETS))(Kyoto Protocol)(emissions trading schemes)(permits)
April 1, 2005... With the commencement of the European Union Emissions Trading Scheme (EUETS) at the start of the year, and the Kyoto Protocol (Protocol) entering international law last month, interest in the business implications of emissions trading schemes...

Ensuring that insureds are assured of insurance practices? Part 2.(Professional Updates: INSURANCE LAW)(Financial Services Reform Act 2001)
April 1, 2005... Over a decade ago, the General Insurance Code of Practice (the Code) was introduced in Australia and was designed to lift standards across the industry. The Code has been widely recognised by government, regulators and consumers as achieving an...

Who're you gonna call? The Company Secretary!(Interviews)
April 1, 2005... Not all CSA members work in companies. Philip Thomas FCIS, of Victoria, Nick Geddes FCIS, of New South Wales, and Ian Gregory FCIS, of Western Australia all work as consultants, providing company secretarial services on a contract basis. Here...

Drowning in words and learning how to swim.(Professional Updates: MANAGEMENT)
April 1, 2005... If you are a professional, the chances are that you will need to write. Whether it's a report, a letter, or a piece of promotional literature, you want it to communicate effectively with a reader, you want to get a message across. And, let's...

Remuneration committees: in the line of fire.(NEWS AND VIEWS)
April 1, 2005... The courtroom battles between shareholders and directors are seldom the stuff of Vanity Fair magazine. However, if the subject matter is the Disney company, the directors include Sydney Poitier and the matter revolves around the tale of two...

Risk management and 'total cost of insurable risk'.(Key Issues: RISK MANAGEMENT)
April 1, 2005... Risk management was once regarded as a functional task, the bastion of the risk manager, with little or no connection to the organisation's broader directions or priorities. These days, however, risk-management functions are considerably more...