This article was written by Dr Michael Psaila and Dr Joshua Chircop Overview On the 23 rd June 2020, the President, on the advice and with the consent of the House of Representatives, enacted the Companies (Amendment) Act , Act number XXXI of 2020 (the "Amendment Act"), which introduces certain amendments to the Companies Act , Chapter 386 of the Laws of Malta (the "Act"). The Companies (Amendment) Bill (the "Bill") was previously tabled before the House of Representatives by the Minister for the Economy, Investment and Small Businesses on the 13 th May 2020. This...

This article was written by Dr Michael Psaila and Dr Joshua Chircop . Overview On 13 th May 2020, the Minister for the Economy, Investment and Small Businesses tabled the Companies Act (Amendment) Bill (the "Bill") which proposes certain amendments to the Companies Act , Chapter 386 of the Laws of Malta (the "Act"). The Bill proposes: 1.new grounds for ineligibility and disqualification from holding certain offices under the Act; 2.new powers to the Minister to make regulations on winding up applications (including the suspension of the right to make winding up ap...

On 12 th May 2020, Legal Notice 192 of 2020, the Companies Act (Company Reconstructions Fund) Regulations 2020 (the " Regulations ") was published to supplement the company recovery procedure as provided under article 329B of the Companies Act (Chapter 386 of the laws of Malta) (the "Act" ). Objective of the Regulations The Regulations set up and regulate the administration and operation of a fund to be designated the Company Recovery Fund (the " Fund ") which is intended to facilitate the company recovery procedure under article 329B of the Act. The Fund shall re...

On 22 nd April, 2020, the European Commission approved Malta's €5.3 million scheme to support investment in research and development related to the current pandemic. Any company, including public entities, intending to undertake research and development regarding COVID-19, and other related projects may benefit under the scheme. The scheme is intended to support the development of new solutions – such as medicinal products, medical equipment, and data collection tools – for the current crisis while also bettering foresight tools and methodologies for the future. B...

Professor Andrew Muscat, who heads the Corporate Law Department at the Firm, has published a series of articles in the Times of Malta dealing with the duties and liabilities of directors of a company experiencing financial difficulties. This subject is particularly relevant these days when several companies are finding themselves in a difficult position as a result of the Covid-19 worldwide pandemic. The first article in the series introduced the subject of directors' duties and the notion of insolvency ( https://timesofmalta.com/articles/view/duties-and-liabiliti...