India: Directors and Officers

Starting a company is only the first step in a long legal journey.

Imagine you are a founder of a company you built from scratch. Over the years, you diluted your shareholding through successive funding rounds, stepped back from day-to-day operations, brought in a professional CEO, and reconstituted the board with independent directors.

Non-compliance under the law does not always result from intentional wrongdoing.

In instances of dishonour of cheques where the issuer of cheque is a corporate entity, Section 141 of the Negotiable Instrument Act, 1881 ("Act") attributes vicarious liability to individuals such as directors/authorised signatories who were responsible for the conduct of the company's business at the time the offence was committed

The Ministry of Corporate Affairs ("MCA"), through notification dated 31.12.2025, notified the Companies (Removal of Names of Companies from the Register of Companies)...

MCA, through notification dated 31.12.2025, notified the Companies (Appointment and Qualification of Directors) Amendment Rules, 2025 ("Appointment Amendment Rules") to amend the Companies...

Twenty years ago, promoters operated with reasonable confidence that corporate form provided liability insulation. Regulatory violations triggered corporate penalties.

Effective from November 18, 2025, every existing and new company directors and Persons with Significant Control (PSCs) of UK companies must comply with the new UK director identity verification mandate.

In an initiative designed to balance corporate governance with pragmatic business considerations, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) released an extensive consultation paper on October 27, 2025.