Treasury Laws Amendment (Combating Illegal Phoenixing) Act 2020 (6 of 2020)

Schedule 2   Improving the accountability of resigning directors

Corporations Act 2001

2   After section 203A

Insert:

203AA Resignation of directors - when resignation takes effect

When resignation takes effect

(1) A person's resignation as a director of a company takes effect on:

(a) if, within 28 days after the day the person stopped being a director of the company, ASIC is notified of that fact under subsection 205A(1) or 205B(5) - the day the person stopped being a director of the company; or

(b) in any other case - the day written notice is lodged with ASIC stating that the person has stopped being a director of the company.

Note 1: A director includes a person appointed to the position of alternate director, see the definition of director in section 9.

Note 2: For the application of this section, see Part 10.37.

(2) However, if:

(a) because of paragraph (1)(b), the person's resignation takes effect on a day that is not the day the person stopped being a director of the company; and

(b) the person or the company applies to ASIC or the Court for it to fix, as the day the person's resignation takes effect, the day (the resignation day ) that the person stopped being a director of the company; and

(c) the application is made in accordance with subsection (5); and

(d) the applicant satisfies ASIC or the Court that the person stopped being a director of the company on the resignation day;

ASIC or the Court may fix the resignation day as the day the person's resignation takes effect.

(3) The Court must not fix the resignation day as the day the person's resignation takes effect unless it is satisfied that it is just and equitable to do so.

(4) ASIC must not fix the resignation day as the day the person's resignation takes effect unless it has had regard to:

(a) any conduct, act, omission or representation of the applicant in relation to notifying ASIC of the resignation; and

(b) the reasons for any delay in notifying ASIC of the resignation.

Application to ASIC or the Court

(5) For the purposes of paragraph (2)(c), the application:

(a) if made to ASIC - must:

(i) be made within 56 days after the day the person stopped being a director of the company; and

(ii) be lodged in the prescribed form; or

(b) if made to the Court - must be made within either:

(i) 12 months after the day the person stopped being a director of the company; or

(ii) such longer period as the Court allows.

Notification to ASIC

(6) If the Court fixes the resignation day as the day the person's resignation takes effect, the applicant must, within 2 business days after the Court fixes the resignation day, lodge with ASIC a copy of the order made by the Court that fixes the day.

(7) An offence based on subsection (6) is an offence of strict liability.

Note: For strict liability, see section 6.1 of the Criminal Code.

Company must be left with at least 1 director

(8) This section has effect subject to section 203AB.

203AB Resignation of directors - resignation has no effect if company has no other directors

(1) The resignation of a director of a company does not take effect if, at the end of the day that the resignation is to take effect, the company does not have at least one director.

Note: For the application of this section, see Part 10.37.

(2) However, subsection (1) does not prevent the resignation of a director of a company taking effect if the resignation is to take effect on or after the day that the winding up of the company is taken, because of Division 1A of Part 5.6, to have begun.