Analysis of the evolution of the appraisal and oppression remedy and its adoption under the Companies Act in South Africa.

Abstract

The Companies Act 71 of 2008 encapsulates the economic sphere, its procedures, problems and possible resolutions to such issues on a wide scale. It allows a litigant a basis and a guideline when dealing with corporate law in relation to the corporate sector. The main idea is to allow free, fair and prosperous trade not only for the majority shareholders but also for the minorities and the financial environment as a whole. Every shareholder who has invested in a company needs to be given the opportunity to be a part of a concern in which (s)he has full confidence and reliance on the controlling members. The issue arises when the aforementioned is not complied with whether it is a large corporation or a small start-up business. There are several remedies which can be used as a means of restitution, however, for purposes of this dissertation we shall analyse two controversial and expanded remedies, namely the Appraisal and Oppression remedies. This dissertation focuses on the two by analyzing the introduction of the Appraisal remedy and its source of adoption and the development of the Oppression remedy with the main aim of answering the questions of whether, firstly, these remedies are warranted in South Africa and, secondly, whether or not further expansion is required for their proper functioning.