Having worked with a large quantity of early-stage companies over a number of years, we have a wealth of experience in advising those companies on the best governance practice. 

  • Board advice: our Corporate team provide governance advice to company boards and directors including on board composition, appointments and terminations, conflicts of interest (including of investor directors and founder directors), best practice for running effective board meetings or written resolution procedures and directors' duties advice. In conjunction with our employment team, we provide advice on onboarding and terminations. 
  • Shareholder advice: we can prepare paperwork for shareholder meetings and resolutions, advise on the best practice for those, and provide legal advice to shareholders. We can provide advice to directors who are also shareholders on their respective duties and roles.  
  • Companies Act and other corporate compliance matters: we can provide specific advice on statutory compliance matters relating to company and corporate law in the jurisdictions in which we operate. This advice may relate to a specific issue, or equally, if requested, a legislative change that could impact the company in the future, so that you are forewarned and forearmed to be fully compliant. 
  • Corporate actions: We can prepare the legal documentation for any corporate actions the company wishes to undertake, including board changes, corporate changes (registered office, registered name), share transfers, share issuances, reorganisation of a company's share capital and provide project management support and undertake Companies House filings and stamping of share transfers on a company's behalf. 
  • Corporate structuring and simplification: Where a well-established venture company proposes to undertake a more complex reorganisation of its share capital (or where there is a corporate group that is to undertake some kind of restructuring or reorganisation), we have a specialist team who work on these projects providing tailored advice and project planning and execution.  [link to CSS section of website]
  • Company secretarial support: if you want to outsource the responsibility for certain or all your corporate governance matters, we provide various fixed packages to make sure your compliance is up to scratch, as well as ad hoc support when needed, whether with share registers, filings or corporate resolutions and approvals.  [Link to CoSec, OCV specific]  
  • Constitutional advice: during the day to day operation of the company we offer pragmatic and solutions-focussed advice on application of a company's constitutional documentation (articles and shareholders' agreement). You may need ad hoc information on the interpretation of a specific provision of the company's constitution in light of something the company wishes to do or circumstances that have arisen. We can help you make amendments to your constitutional documents. 
  • PSC compliance: We provide assistance with PSC (people with significant control) analyses and filings.
  • Shareholder disputes: a well run company is unlikely to encounter a shareholder dispute. However, in the event there was a dispute between shareholders or between a shareholder and the company, our Disputes team has specialist lawyers who can advise on a shareholder dispute before proceedings are launched to help find a commercial resolution, and can act on a litigated disputes. 
  • Tax advice: Our experienced tax team, who are familiar with venture companies, VC investors and owner managers can provide tax advice associated with the services referred to above.
  • Harnessing technology: our corporate practice have adopted technologies to increase efficiency in document drafting, project management and document execution, meaning a smooth, quick and cost effective experience for our company clients.  
  • Training: We offer training on corporate governance issues for in-house legal counsel, company secretaries and others responsible for keeping abreast of corporate governance developments and those wanting to get a better understanding of existing Companies Act rules and their application to their company.