An Appraisal of the Effects of Court Injunctions on Company Meetings under the Companies and Allied Matters Act 2020

Abstract

In recent times, the trend of obtaining court injunctions especially ex parte orders seems to be a threat to the smooth operations of corporate organisations in Nigeria. Are there effects these court injunctions may have on company meetings and by implication corporate governance? The paper adopts the doctrinal method of research by examining primary sources such as statutes, especially the newly enacted Company and Allied Matter Acts 2020 in Nigeria, case laws and opinions of authors such as scholarly articles, journals and newspapers. The paper found that CAMA makes provisions and guarantees the right of any aggrieved members or shareholders of the company to approach the court, either to restrain the company from holding any three major types of company meeting or approach the court for injunction to compel the company to hold the meeting. The paper appreciates the innovative provisions of CAMA 2020 in this respect but conclude that court and court injunction should not be the first weapon or arsenal of any aggrieved member but a means of last resort without recourse to an alternative dispute resolution mechanism which could assist in resolving any issues faster without animosity such as we experience after any Court proceedings or judgment. The paper makes further recommendations to tame this tide.