Directors and small companies - a discussion paper

Abstract

The company was an extraordinary invention. It helps to remember how the notion of the company started and how it grew. The company as we know it today evolved over centuries from the joint stock company which first started being properly regulated in the early 19th century. The original company was typically a big, hugely expensive and risky enterprise. Buying and fitting out vessels often for cross-oceanic expeditions, or the building of canals and railroads. The creation of the company and the benefit of official incorporation had its critics and caused controversy. Objections and concerns increased extensively when the great concession of shareholder limited liability was added.