THE SHAREHOLDER AND MODERN PUBLIC COMPANY MANAGEMENT

The aim of this study was to explain why a number of large public companies had experienced major legal problems in recent years involving mismanagement or managerial abuse of position and to consider what the law could do or should be doing to regulate them. In Part I a model, "the Legal Theory model" of the legal relationship between a company, its directors and its shareholders was constructed and analysed in depth against its historical socio-political background. A second model, "the Commercial Reality model", was hypothesised as an alternative reflecting more closely how the relationships actually work in the modem public limited company, and an explanation was sought as to why the two models might be diametrically opposed. In Part II, a practical study was undertaken of a number of specific quoted public limited companies. Survey research was carried out to determine the opinions of those involved in public limited companies and cases where substantial problems of mismanagement or managerial abuse had occurred in large companies were analysed in detail. The data thus collected was used to test the two models and the hypothesis that serious legal problems occur because the Legal Theory model is no longer able to fulfil its proper functions. It is submitted that this study has contributed to the general understanding of how large public limited companies really operate and what the relationships between its organs are. It provides a more realistic basis for consideration of why and how they should be regulated in future. The conclusions and recommendations suggest new factors which should be taken into consideration when constructing a reformed Legal Theory model which will not only regulate the large public limited company of today but will provide a vehicle for twenty-first century development. The work concludes by describing how such a company might be organised in the future.

Name dc:type.qualificationname

PhD

Level dc:type.qualificationlevel

Doctoral

Grantor dc:publisher.institution

De Montfort University

Year dc:date.issued

1994

Author dc:creator

• WILKINSON, JACQUELINE

Licence

• https://dora.dmu.ac.uk/bitstreams/d707a7f6-c891-4c0f-b618-479086909392/download