Relevance of Director Duties in a Post Brexit, Post COVID World: Reconsidering S. 175, S. 176 and 177 of the Companies Act, 2006 and the overall impact on S. 172

Abstract

It was with the Companies Act 2006 that there has been a clear codification of director duties. Specifically, the obligation on the part of director to avoid conflict of interest, duty not to accept benefit from third parties and duty to declare interest in proposed transaction or arrangements. Which is contained in Section 175, 176 and 177 of the Companies Act, 2006. This dissertation provides an analysis of whether the director duties mentioned in S. 175, 176 and 177 of the Companies Act is too restrictive in light of a post-pandemic and post-Brexit world and whether it should be revisited specifically in light of a post-pandemic and post-Brexit world where companies have to stay competitive, decisions have to be made quickly and more importantly, competent officers need to form part of the company for a competitive growth. In light of the change of approach contained in the above three sections, what impact does it have on S. 172 which states that “A director of a company must act in the way he considers, in good faith, would be most likely to promote the success of the company for the benefit of its members as a whole.”