Abstract
This minor dissertation will critically evaluate section 77(7) of the Companies Second Amendment Act 17 of 2024, which was enacted to amend the Companies Act 71 of 2008.
This minor dissertation's focus area will be the relationship between section 77(7) of the Companies Act before its amendment and the Prescription Act 68 of 1969; section 77(7) of the Companies Second Amendment Act, and its implications on director liability for breach of, among other things, his/her fiduciary duties. The study will conduct a comparative analysis of the United Kingdom’s Companies Act of 2006 and the Limitation Act of 1980, with the intention of determining how these laws have been utilised to overcome issues occasioned by time-barred claims.
The study will conclude whether or not the amendment to section 77(7) was unwarranted and whether the Prescription Act provides adequate protection mechanisms that a company can utilise to overcome issues caused by time-barred claims. The study will also provide recommendations on how section 77(7) can be amended to ensure that it achieves its intended objectives.