Stay ahead with this brand-new 2025 session designed for local government lawyers. Explore the latest legal, governance, and operational challenges in setting up and managing local authority companies.
This course will run on Zoom.
This half day course will cover key issues and considerations for local government lawyers when dealing with local authority companies from set up through to exit management. It will draw on practical examples to demonstrate the issues and how to deal with them. A key theme that the course will explore is how the local authority and the company interact – in good times and in bad – and how probity and good governance can be demonstrated.
The course content will cover the strategic context of why local authorities set up or participate in separate companies, the process of setting up a company including its purpose, powers, and structures, and governance aspects such as documentation, directors, shareholders/members, control versus freedom, and conflicts of interest. It will also address practical considerations like funding, resources, property, procurement and subsidy control, delivery, disputes, and exit planning. Additionally, the session will highlight potential pitfalls and red flags, concluding with a Q&A opportunity.
The key learning objective of the course is to obtain, update or refresh an understanding of local authority companies and how they work with the local authorities that set them up.
This course is ideal for senior lawyers in local government whatever their current level of interaction with local authority companies. It is equally accessible for lawyers at any level looking to develop their knowledge (or take a refresher) on local authority companies.
Alex Lawrence is a senior associate in Anthony Collins’ local government team. He specialises in commercial contracts, public procurement, subsidy control and governance matters.
Alex has extensive experience as a solicitor, gained both in-house with a large local authority and in private practice, advising on a range of public sector service areas. As a governance lawyer he has advised on the set-up of and local government participation in companies and limited liability partnerships guiding local authorities from their early consideration of setting up new entities to the establishment and day to day operation of those entities. He has also undertaken governance reviews and advised on companies being dormant and dissolved.
Alex holds the Law Society Diploma in Local Government Law and Practice and is ranked for local government in both the Legal 500 and Chambers.
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09:30 - 13:00
Online
