Contents -- Preface -- 1 Why a limited company? -- Choices -- Why a limited company? -- What sort of company? -- Limited liability partnerships (LLPs) - an alternative corporate structure -- Advantages of trading as a limited company -- 2 Forming a private limited company -- Choosing your company name -- The Consumer Credit Act 1974 -- Trade marks -- Trading names -- Displaying the company's name -- Documents to be completed -- The Memorandum of Association -- The Articles of Association -- Duties and fees payable -- Incorporation -- Pre-incorporation contracts -- Transfer of existing business to yourcompany -- 3 Capital -- Corporate capital -- Increasing the company's capital -- Directors' authority to allot shares -- The share premium account -- Reducing the company's capital -- Company borrowings: mortgages, charges and debentures -- Registration of charges -- The Consumer Credit Act 1974 -- 4 Directors -- Who is a director? -- Who can be a director? -- Appointment of directors -- Resignation and removal -- Directors as employees -- Directors' duties -- Directors as agents -- Loans to directors and 'connected persons' -- Connected persons -- Loans to employees -- The Consumer Credit Act 1974 -- Company non-cash assets -- Fines and penalties -- Share dealings -- Skill and care -- Delegation -- Statutory duties -- Directors' liability -- Employers' duties -- The directors, the company and the shareholders -- Directors and outsiders -- Business leases -- Commercial contracts -- Insurance -- Disqualification -- 5 Running the company -- Directors -- The company secretary -- The statutory records -- Annual return -- The accounts -- Accounting records -- Privacy -- Disclosing the accounts -- Auditors -- The company seal -- Share issues -- Share certificates -- Meetings -- The first board meeting -- General meetings -- Voting.

The Annual General Meeting -- Extraordinary General Meetings -- Notice of meetings -- Resolutions -- 6 Changes after incorporation -- Change of directors and secretary -- Changing the auditors -- Change of registered office -- Changes in the place where statutory records and documents are kept -- Change of name -- Increases in capital and allotment of shares -- Changes in the Articles of Association -- Changing the accounting reference date -- Filing the accounts -- Striking the company off the Register -- 7 Insolvency -- What is insolvency? -- Voluntary striking off -- Voluntary arrangements: compositions and schemes of arrangement -- Administration orders -- Receivership -- Receivers and directors -- Voluntary arrangement -- Protection for floating charge-holders -- Voluntary arrangement with amoratorium -- Winding up -- Voluntary winding up -- Voluntary liquidation -- Distribution -- Creditors' rights -- Dissolution in a voluntary liquidation -- Compulsory winding up -- Fines and penalties -- Voidable transactions: preferences and transactions at an undervalue -- Dissolution in compulsory winding up -- Restriction on use of the company name -- 8 The ready-made company -- Appendix 1 Notes for guidance on company names -- Appendix 2 Documents to be filed on incorporation by a private limited company -- Appendix 3 Documents which must be lodged with the Registrar -- Appendix 4 Books, registers and documents which must be available for inspection and of which copies or extracts can be requisitioned -- Appendix 5 Useful notices and notes -- Appendix 6 Useful addresses -- Index -- Index of advertisers.