Plain language law

New Zealand law explained for everyone

Companies Act 1993

Enforcement - Personal actions by shareholders

170: Actions by shareholders to require directors to act

You could also call this:

“Shareholders can ask courts to make directors follow company rules or laws”

Even though there’s a rule in another part of the law about what shareholders can do, you can still ask the court to make a director do something. If you own shares in a company, you can go to court and ask them to order a director to do something that the company’s rules or the law says they should do. The court will only do this if they think it’s fair and right. If the court agrees to make this order, they can also decide to do other things to help sort out the situation.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM320831.

Topics:
Business > Industry rules
Business > Fair trading
Crime and justice > Courts and legal help
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Part 9 Enforcement
Personal actions by shareholders

170Actions by shareholders to require directors to act

  1. Notwithstanding section 169, the court may, on the application of a shareholder of a company, if it is satisfied it is just and equitable to do so, make an order requiring a director of the company to take any action that is required to be taken by the directors under the constitution of the company or this Act and, on making the order, the court may grant such other consequential relief as it thinks fit.

Notes
  • Section 170: amended, on , by section 126 of the Financial Reporting (Amendments to Other Enactments) Act 2013 (2013 No 102).