Thursday 4th June 2020 at 10:30
Programme
This webinar will explore the importance of the Director and Board Meetings during this unprecedented time of lockdown. The speakers will endeavour to explore how Directors can effectively continue managing their companies within the constraints of social distancing. The topics of discussion will be centred around providing the audience with practical solutions and considerations which may be implemented at Board level to ensure that Board meetings, held at a distance, can still be effective in practice, while still adhering to any constraints imposed by law.
Moderator: Dr. Krista Pisani Bencini
A: Introduction:
Speaker: Dr. Krista Pisani Bencini
B. Directors’ General Responsibilities
Speaker: Dr. Sarah Grima
The Speaker will set out the general responsibilities of Directors under Maltese law. She will explain how these general duties are owed by Directors to the Company on which Board they sit and how the Director’s main aim is to act in the best interest of the Company as a whole.
C. Board Meetings
Speaker: Dr. Krista Pisani Bencini, Dr. Maria Debono
The Speakers will briefly outline the regulation of meetings under Maltese law and the manner in which decisions are typically taken by Directors of a Maltese Company.
D. Practical Considerations
Speakers: Dr. Sarah Grima, Dr. Maria Debono
The Speakers will consider certain key aspects of Board meetings which may be particularly relevant in the current circumstances. What considerations should Directors make during their decision-making process? The Speakers will assess, amongst other matters, possible revisions to the statutes of the company Directors should recommend, circulation of Board papers, recording online sessions, the role of the Chair, the regulation of meetings and attending by proxy, amongst other matters.
E. Tax Matters
Speakers: Dr. Sarah Rausi, Dr. Rebecca Diacono
The speakers will discuss various concerns which the Board may have during this period when physical meetings cannot be held, primarily addressing matters related to the place of management and control of the company, and the risks, if any, of creating permanent establishments in other jurisdictions.
F. Practical Experience
Speakers: Mr. Karl Diacono, Mr. Adrian Mercieca
As Directors on various local companies, the Speakers will address certain practical questions put forward by the Moderator. What challenges are Directors facing in practice? How are Directors effectively communicating with one another? Has the relationship between Maltese and non-Maltese Directors changed at all during these times? The Speakers will address, in particular, the need for Directors to act quickly to assess risk to business, solvency issues and obligations at law, the various needs which different types of businesses have, the need for flexibility from authorities during these times. The Speakers will draw on their own practical experience from actual cases in which they was involved in the past months.
G. Question Time and Closing.
To register for this Webinar please click here.
