LAWS7893 Corporate Governance Law
This course focuses on the theoretical and practical aspects of corporate governance; and the way that Australia, and jurisdictions such as the UK, the US and the EU deal with a variety of corporate governance issues.
Building on undergraduate teaching, the course examines company law in its wider context, including the influence of law, soft law and self-regulation on corporate governance. The course aims to build detailed knowledge of corporate law and corporate governance, and the role played by, and rights and duties of, shareholders, directors, managers and other stakeholders.
Successful completion of the course will enable students to analyse and critique regulation in both legal and policy terms; understand the interaction between corporate governance regulation and other areas of society; be aware of different policy perspectives on corporate governance and their legal implications; and demonstrate knowledge of current reform proposals.
Topics covered include:
- introduction to company law and corporate governance
- the scope and functions of company law
- the shareholder value model
- comparison of regulatory approaches in the US, the EU and Australia
- takeover regulation
- the growing influence of soft law
- information disclosure and institutional investors
Prof. Ross Grantham
Professor Grantham's teaching and research interests are in the fields of restitution and company law. In addition to authoring many monographs, casebooks and journal articles, Ross is a member of the editorial boards of The Company Lawyer and the Journal of Corporate Law Studies, and the Australian editor of the Journal of Business Law. He currently serves as the Director of the Australian Centre for Private Law.
Before joining UQ in 2004, Ross was Professor of Commercial Law and Head of Department at the University of Auckland, and Deputy Director of the Research Centre for Business Law. Professor Grantham was Dean of Law and Head of the UQ Law School between 2007 and 2012.
Dr Vicky Comino
Dr Vicky Comino is a Lecturer at The University of Queensland. Dr Comino's main research area is corporations law, and in particular the regulation of corporate misconduct. Before commencing an academic career, she practised as a solicitor working at Morris Fletcher & Cross (now Minter Ellison Lawyers) in the fields of corporate law, leasing, commercial and residential conveyancing, strata development, securities and opinion work. Over the years, Dr Comino has worked voluntarily for Legal Aid, South Brisbane Immigration & Community Legal Service, Women's Equal Opportunity (WEO) and Justice and the Law Society (JATL) (UQ). She has also served on numerous committees, most recently on the Queensland Law Society Business Law Specialist Accreditation Advisory Committee.
Dr Comino's 2015 monograph Australia's "Company Law Watchdog" - ASIC and Corporate Regulation focuses on exploring how, and to what extent, ASIC in its role as corporate regulator can achieve more effective regulation of the corporations legislation and consolidates her position as a leading researcher in Australia on corporate regulation. Her recent articles have addressed topics in the corporations law field, particularly the problems facing the use of civil penalties by calling for the enactment of legislation to resolve procedural obstacles. Dr Comino holds the degrees of BA, LLB (Hons), LLM and PhD (UQ).
CPD
This course may also be taken as a CPD course or a non-award course.