In this guide, we look at what is a company director in relation to a UK Limited company.
Basic
- Company directors are the people responsible for the day to day running of a Limited company
- A company director does not own the company. The shareholders own the company (could be the same person)
- Anybody over the age of 16 may be a company director
The job of a director
- The company director is responsible for the management and running of the company
- Legally you must attempt to make the company successful and act in the interests of the company
- You are legally responsible for the company. If the company breaks the law, you can be held accountable
Who can be a director
- You must be over 16 to become a company director
- You may not be a director if there is a legal measure preventing you. This can happen if you have been involved in illegal activities or if you have mismanaged a company
- Undischarged bankrupts can generally not become company directors
Powers of a director
- The powers and responsibilities of a director are company specific
- They should be defined in the company’s Articles of Association
- The directors are generally empowered to act on all matters on behalf of the company, though some matters may require a general meeting and shareholder voting
Types of director
- Managing director, creative director, operations director….what is the difference?
- The director part is significant as it creates your responsibility for the company
- The flavour of director is arbitrary and is used semantically to describe a role; they have no formal legal basis unless defined in your companies Articles
Director privacy
- Directors are recorded at Companies House as the role makes you a member or officer of the company
- Your home address, age, occupation are available to anybody
- You may use a directors service address to protect your home address information
