Overview
The goal of the Company Directors Disqualification Act 1986 (CDDA) is to protect the public and to deter competition law breaches. This subjects director behaviour to close scrutiny by courts and regulators, whose public enforcement goals differ from those associated with general company law director duties. In recent years the risk of disqualification has also been heightened, with directors being disqualified from being involved in the management of companies for infringements of UK competition with increasing frequency, and for lengthening periods of disbarment.
As the UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) ramps up its enforcement activity, we discuss the recent cases and summarise the key obligations imposed on directors under UK company law and compare these with the standards of review to which directors will be subject under the CDDA, in each case with particular reference to non-executive directors (NEDs). We also offer practical steps to avert the risk of a career-endangering disqualification order.
