Lifting the Veil Essay

The oecumenic reasoning of the tap in this bea of humeral veil Lifting the Corporate veil has been confusing and, at times, contraryDiscussThe enquire requires an analysis of whether the parent commwholey (A) lead be probable for the claims against its auxiliary, (b) in some other words, whether the bodied veil can be elevate in this group structure. Both the parent ships corporation and its auxiliary are in integrated which have been legally formed. A gild once incorporated, is a separate, and different legal entirely from the people who set it up The overcloud of incorporation is created by the formula of separate legal personality and that limited liability which are establish in Salomon v Salomon & Co Ltd (1897)A compevery, once incorporated is a separate and distinct from the people who set it up. In a follow limited by shares, a members liability for the company debts is limited to his subscribed shares. The acts are very protective of the Salomon princi ple and precisely lift the wipe out in a small human action of exceptional cases at putting green practice of law and by statute. As in that location are no clear(p) rules or guidelines for lifting the corporate veil, it is correct argued that this area of law is confusing, contradiction and difficult to rationalize. workout in Solomon v Solomon& Co Ltd (1897)In a company limited by shares, a shareholder is not likely for the companys debts. As (A) hold shares in (b) , it enjoys the protection of limited liability in compliance of debts of (b), if the corporate veil could be elevate and the separate legal personality of (b) be ignored, (a) would be apt(p) for claims against (b). The court may lift the corporate veil if the corporate group structure is utilise as the example in go game v Cape Industries plc 1990 Cape Industries plc (cape) was an English mining company and its products were marketed with its subsidiary companies in the linked State. A number of workers suffered from inhaling asbestos. The question can Cape mother company in England be presumable for the subsidiary in the state.The judgment in Adams v Cape Industries Plc 1990 has significantly narrow the ability of the court to lift the Veil in case, subsidiary companies were incorporated in the United States of that the parent company in the United Kingdom could avoid future asbestosis claims in the United State. The costof Appeal reviewed this complex area of law and concluded that the Veil could only be lifted in three circumstances.. The only way that the veil of incorporation would be lifted by the Court was only in thee circumstances, (i) view cape group as a single entity, (ii) describe the subsidiary as a mere faade, (iii) the subsidiary were agents for cape. The Court exhaustively examine all the three possibility (i) find the subsidiary as a mere faadeFirst, the veil may be lifted when the corporate structure is a mere sham or faade concealing the true fact. It is dif ficult to clearly define mere faade or decided whether the arrangements of a corporate group involve a faade. In Adam v Cape the Court of Appeal held that the company structure was a faade when it had been used by a suspect to evade limitations imposed on his conduct by law or when it had been used to evade rights which third parties already possessed against him.In Gilford Motor Co v Horn 1933A former employee who was bound by a covenant not to solicit client from his former employers set up a company to do so. The defendant formed the company as a device to avoid liabilities in interruption of his pre- compriseing legal duty and the Veil was lifted .J singles v Lipman 1982The Veil was lifted when the company was set up by the defendant to avoid limited performance in relation to transfer of land. The Court described the company as a device, a sham, a mask which he hold before his face in an attempt to avoid credit entry by the eye of equity. The defendant formed the company as device to avoid liabilities in breach of his pre existing legal duty and the Veil was lifted.The company structure is a faade only when it has used by a defendant to evade limitations imposed on his conduct by law Example in Jones v Lipman 1962Mr. Lipmann had entered had entered into a contact with Mr. Jones for the sale of land. Mr. Lipman then changed his mind and did not want to make out the sale. He formed a company in order to avoid the transaction and conveyed the land to it instead. He then claimed he no longer owned theland and could not comply with the contract. The judge be the company was but a faade and granted an order for specific performance. But the of Appeal in Adam Court in held that each company was a separate legal entity from its shareholders and the presence of the US subsidiaries did not automatically amount to the presence of the English parent company. (ii) view cape group as an AgencySecondly, the Court may lift the veil if a express delegation relati onship exist between a company and its shareholders, or between a parent and subsidiary company in a group structure. Although a company is a separate legal entity instead an agent of its shareholders, it is potential that there is evidence of day to day control and that an agency relationship can be established on particular facts. It is, however, difficult to prove an agency relationship without express agreement. Somme guidance is provided in Smith, careen & Knight Ltd v Birmingham Corp 1939In order to maximize the amount of stipend, the parent company argued that the subsidiary carried on the stage business as its agent. It was held that whether there was an agency relationship was a question of fact in each case, such as who was actually carrying on the business, who received the profit, who was actually conducting the business and who was in good and constant control of the business. As the subsidiary was operating on behalf of the parent company the court lifted the Veil on the basis of the existence of an agency relationship. It can be argued that third is not a true exception to Salomon principle it is merely an instance where the normal agency principles applies.In the absent of an express agency agreement or the evidence of day to day control, it is very difficult to establish an agency relationship In Smith, Stone & Knight v Birmingham Corporation 1939 In Smith, Stone and Knight Ltd v Birmingham Corporation (1939) All ER 116, Atkinson J lifted the veil to enable a subsidiary company operating business on land owned by the holding company to claim compensation on the ground of agency. The parent company held almost all the shares in the subsidiary and profit of the subsidiary were enured as the profits of the parent was in effective con troll of the business and similarly the personnel who conducted the business and also appointed the personnelwho conducted the business.It was held that whether there was an agency relationship was a question o f fact in each case, such as who was really carrying on the business, who received the profit and who was in effective and constant control of the business. The veil was lifted in this case on the ground of any agency relationship. Although (a) hold all the shares in its subsidiary and all the profit flow back to it, there is no evidence of day to day control of an express agency agreement. It is therefore unlikely that the court would consider (b) as the agent of (a) (iii) view cape group as a single entity bingle economic Unit) Third, in relation to the debate on single economic unit, Lord Denning in DHN nutrition Distributors Ltd v Tower Hamlets LBC (1976)Argued that a group of companies was in reality a single economic entity and should be treaty as one. This view was disapproved by the House of Lords in Woolfson v Strathclyde Regional Council (1979)Which held that the Veil would be upheld unless it was a faade, In Adam v Cape held that, whether or not this is desirable, the rights to use a corporate structure in this manner inherent in our corporate law. The fundamental principle is that each company in a group of companies is a separate legal entity possessed of separate legal rights and liabilities. The Court, however, will ignore the distinction of particular statutory or contractual supplys, the meaning of which is disappointingly unclear. There is debate as whether the Veil can be lift in the interest of justice. This idea of lifting the corporate Veil in pursuit of justice was championed by Lord Denning in Wallesteiner v Moir 1974It is held in Adam v Cape that the Veil cannot be lifted merely in pursuit of justice. Another ground for lifting the Veil is where the Country is at war and it is in the Countrys interest to do so. Daimler v cathode-ray tube (1916) The application of this category is limited and it is more about politics than law. In addition to the examples at common law, the courts may lift the Veil and hold individuals shareholders or directors liable for the companys liabilities according to statutory provision. Section 761 of the companiesAct 2006, for example, reauires that the directors of a public limited company be jointly and severally liable to indemnify the other party in respect of any loss or damage suffered by reason of the company failure to comply with the provision that company should not trade before its registration. consort to section 213 of the insolvency Act 1986 on fraudulent trading, the Court may declare that any person, who carries on the business with the intention to defraud the company assets.Lord Diplock in Dimbleby v National Union of Journalists 1984States that the statutory provision must be in clear and unequivocal language The judicial approach towards lifting the corporate Veil is still unclear and lacks precise guidance despite the judgment in Adam v Cape. The Courts out to proceed on a case-by-case basis in deciding whether to lift the corporate Veil. The a couple of(pren ominal) number of examples at common law and in statute reflects the court reluctance to ignore the Salomon principle which are the openations of company law and have promoted the economic growth.This theory was first put forward by Lord Denning inin the case DHN Food v Distributors Ltd v Tower Hamlets (1976) who agreed that a group of companies was in reality a single economic entity, and should be treated as one the court was entitled to look at the realities of the situation to lift the corporate veil. The Court in Adam rejected the channel by stating that there was no general principle that all companies in a group of companies were to be regard as one.The fundamental principle is that each company in a group of companies is a separate legal entity with separate legal rights and liabilities. The disapproval of the single economic unit theory was confirmed in the case Ord v Belhaven Pub Ltd (1998) where the Court did not allow a plaintiff with a claimed against one subsidiary c ompany to substitute the parent company as defendant merely because the group might be a single economic units.Lord Denning in the Court of Appeal examined the major single economic units case where group structure were as single entity. It found that the case all involved the interpretation of the statute or a document. The Court reject the argument that cape was the group should be treat as one andconfirm the principle of Salomon.It can be argued, therefore, that the group structure of (b) and its subsidiaries is legitimate and it is very unlikely that the court will hold the parent liable on the ground of fraud, sham or mere faade.ConclusionsGiven the judicial reluctance to ignore the Salomon principles, it is highly unlikely that the court will hold (a) liable for the claims against (b) on the basis that the group structure is a mere faade, or there is an express agency relationship between them or that they should be treated as one economic unit