The Companies Act 1985 (c. 6) is an Act of the

Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland The Parliament of the United Kingdom is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom, the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories. It meets at the Palace of Westminster, London. It alone possesses legislative supremacy ...

, enacted in 1985, which enabled

companies A company, abbreviated as co., is a legal entity representing an association of people, whether natural, legal or a mixture of both, with a specific objective. Company members share a common purpose and unite to achieve specific, declared go ...

to be formed by registration, and set out the responsibilities of companies, their

director Director may refer to: Literature * ''Director'' (magazine), a British magazine * ''The Director'' (novel), a 1971 novel by Henry Denker * ''The Director'' (play), a 2000 play by Nancy Hasty Music * Director (band), an Irish rock band * ''D ...

s and

secretaries A secretary, administrative professional, administrative assistant, executive assistant, administrative officer, administrative support specialist, clerk, military assistant, management assistant, office secretary, or personal assistant is a wh ...

. It has largely been superseded by the

Companies Act 2006 The Companies Act 2006 (c 46) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which forms the primary source of UK company law. The Act was brought into force in stages, with the final provision being commenced on 1 October 2009. It largely ...

. The Act was a consolidation of various other pieces of company legislation, and was one component of the rules governing companies in

England and Wales England and Wales () is one of the three legal jurisdictions of the United Kingdom. It covers the constituent countries England and Wales and was formed by the Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542. The substantive law of the jurisdiction is Eng ...

and in Scotland. A company will also be governed by its own

memorandum A memorandum ( : memoranda; abbr: memo; from the Latin ''memorandum'', "(that) which is to be remembered") is a written message that is typically used in a professional setting. Commonly abbreviated "memo," these messages are usually brief and ...

and articles of association.

Table A Table A in UK company law is the old name for the Model Articles or default form of articles of association for companies limited by shares incorporated either in England and Wales or in Scotland before 1 October 2009 where the incorporators do n ...

, which lays out default articles of association, was not included in the body of the Act, as it had been in all previous Companies Acts. Instead, it was introduced by statutory instrument - the Companies (Tables A to F) Regulations 1985. The Act applied only to companies incorporated under it, or under earlier Companies Acts.

Sole trader A sole proprietorship, also known as a sole tradership, individual entrepreneurship or proprietorship, is a type of enterprise owned and run by one person and in which there is no legal distinction between the owner and the business entity. A sole ...

partnerships A partnership is an arrangement where parties, known as business partners, agree to cooperate to advance their mutual interests. The partners in a partnership may be individuals, business entity, businesses, interest-based organizations, schoo ...

limited liability partnership A limited liability partnership (LLP) is a partnership in which some or all partners (depending on the jurisdiction) have limited liabilities. It therefore can exhibit elements of partnerships and corporations. In an LLP, each partner is not ...

s etc. were not governed by the Act. Company law throughout the United Kingdom is now governed by the

, which received

Royal Assent Royal assent is the method by which a monarch formally approves an act of the legislature, either directly or through an official acting on the monarch's behalf. In some jurisdictions, royal assent is equivalent to promulgation, while in oth ...

on 8 November 2006, and which was commenced in stages between then and 1 October 2009. Certain aspects of the Companies Act 1985 have not been replaced by the Companies Act 2006, and they will remain in force: * company investigations * orders imposing restrictions on shares following an investigation * Scottish floating charges and receivers.BIS FAQ on what is left behind
/ref>

References

External links

* {{UK legislation 1985 in Scotland United Kingdom Acts of Parliament 1985 Acts of the Parliament of the United Kingdom concerning England and Wales United Kingdom company law Acts of the Parliament of the United Kingdom concerning Scotland

See also

References

External links