The shareholder: ownership without operations

Shareholders own the company. Their rights are economic and consultative: receiving dividends when declared, attending and voting at general meetings, and approving the matters the Companies Act 2016 reserves for them, appointing directors, varying class rights, amending the constitution, declaring solvency, and approving certain transactions. They do not run the company day to day, and they do not personally owe fiduciary duties to the company.

The director: management and fiduciary duty

Directors manage the company's affairs. Section 213 of the Companies Act 2016 sets out their core duties:

  • Section 213(1):"A director of a company shall at all times exercise his powers in accordance with this Act, for a proper purpose and in good faith in the best interest of the company."
  • Section 213(2): A director shall exercise reasonable care, skill, and diligence with both (a) the knowledge, skill and experience which may reasonably be expected of a director having the same responsibilities, and (b) any additional knowledge, skill, and experience which the director in fact has.

The second limb is the trap for the experienced: the more you know, the higher the standard.

Breach of section 213 attracts, under section 213(3), a fine of up to RM3 million and/or imprisonment of up to 5 years, in addition to civil liability to the company.

Where founders get caught

A founder who is both shareholder and director must, in practice, separate the two hats. A decision made "as a shareholder", for example, voting at a general meeting on a transaction that benefits another business of yours, does not relieve you of the parallel question: as a director, are you also acting in good faith and in the best interest of the company? The same act can be permissible in one capacity and a breach in the other.

The practical separation

  • Capacity: at every key decision, ask in which capacity you are acting. Record it in the minutes.
  • Conflicts:declare interests promptly and recuse yourself from the board's deliberation. Voting your shares at a general meeting is different from voting as a director.
  • Documentation: board resolutions and shareholder resolutions are not interchangeable. The wrong instrument can void the decision.

If responsibilities between your board and shareholders feel blurred, or you are setting up that boundary for the first time, please contact us before the first major decision tests it.

股东：拥有，而不经营

股东拥有公司。其权利偏重经济与决策性：在派息时收取股息、出席并在股东大会上表决，以及就《2016 年公司法令》保留给股东的事项作出批准，任命董事、变更股权类别权利、修订章程、确认偿债能力，以及核准特定交易。股东并不日常经营公司，也不就公司承担个人信义义务。

董事：经营，并承担信义义务

董事经营公司的事务。《2016 年公司法令》第 213 条列明其核心义务：

  • 第 213(1) 条：「公司董事须随时依本法令、为正当目的、并以诚实信用为公司最佳利益行使权力。」
  • 第 213(2) 条：董事须以合理之注意、技能与勤勉履行职责，标准包括：(a) 担任同等职责之董事所应具有之知识、技能与经验；以及 (b) 该董事本人实际所具有之额外知识、技能与经验。

第二款是经验丰富者的陷阱：您懂得越多，标准也就越高。

违反第 213 条者，依第 213(3) 条最高可被处以 300 万令吉罚款及／或 5 年监禁，并须对公司承担民事责任。

创办人最常踩的雷

身兼股东与董事之创办人，必须在实务上分清两顶帽子。以「股东身份」作出的决定，例如在股东大会上就一笔有利于您旗下另一项业务的交易投票，并不解除您并行的法律问题：作为董事，您是否也在以诚实信用与为公司最佳利益行事？同一行为，可能在一种身份下合法，在另一种身份下却构成违反。

实务上的角色切分

  • 身份：每一项关键决策时，先问您此刻是以哪种身份行事，并写入会议记录。
  • 利益冲突：及时披露利益、回避相关董事会讨论。在股东大会上行使表决权，与以董事身份在董事会投票，是两件不同的事。
  • 文件：董事会决议与股东决议并非可互换的工具。用错文件，决定可能无效。

若贵公司董事会与股东之职责边界仍不清晰，或您正首次为公司确立此一界线，请在重大决策付诸实施之前与本所联系。