Articles of Association :

The articles of association of a company are its rules and regulations, which are framed to manage its internal affairs. Just as the memorandum contains the fundamental conditions upon which along the company is allowed to be incorporated, so also the articles are the internal regulations of the company (Guiness vs. Land Corporation of Ireland 22 Ch. D. 349, 381). These general functions of the articles have been aptly summed up by Lord Cairns in Ashbury Carriage Co. vs. Riches as follows: “The articles play a part subsidiary to memorandum of association. They accept the memorandum as the charter of incorporation, and so accepting it the articles proceed to define the duties, the rights and powers of the governing body as between themselves and the company and the mode and form in which the business of the company is to be carried on, and the mode and form in which changes in the internal regulation of the company may from time to time be made.”

The document containing the articles of association of a company (the Magna Carta) is a business document; hence it has to be construed strictly. It regulates domestic management of a company and creates certain rights and obligations between the members and the company [S.S. Rajkumar vs. Perfect Castings (P.) Ltd. [1968] 38 Camp. Case 187].

The articles of association are in fact the bye-laws of the company according to which director and other officers are required to perform their functions as regards the management of the company, its accounts and audit. It is important therefore that the auditor should study them and, while doing so he should note the provisions therein in respect of relevant matters.

Section 5 of the Companies Act, 2013 seeks to provide the contents and model of articles of association. The section lays the following law-

(1) Contains regulations: The articles of a company shall contain the regulations for management of the company.

(2) Inclusion of matters: The articles shall also contain such matters, as are prescribed under the rules. However, a company may also include such additional matters in its articles as may be considered necessary for its management.

(3) Contain provisions for entrenchment: The articles may contain provisions for entrenchment (to protect something) to the effect that specified provisions of the articles may be altered only if conditions or procedures as that are more restrictive than those applicable in the case of a special resolution, are met or complied with.

(4) Manner of inclusion of the entrenchment provision: The provisions for entrenchment shall only be made either on formation of a company, or by an amendment in the articles agreed to by all the members of the company in the case of a private company and by a special resolution in the case of a public company.

(5) Notice to the registrar of the entrenchment provision: Where the articles contain provisions for entrenchment, whether made on formation or by amendment, the company shall give notice to the Registrar of such provisions in such form and manner as may be prescribed.

(6) Forms of articles: The articles of a company shall be in respective forms specified in Tables, F, G, H, I and J in Schedule I as may be applicable to such company.

(7) Model articles: A company may adopt all or any of the regulations contained in the model articles applicable to such company.

(8) Company registered after the commencement of this Act: In case of any company, which is registered after the commencement of this Act, in so far as the registered articles of such company do not exclude or modify the regulations contained in the model articles applicable to such company, those regulations shall, so far as applicable, be the regulations of that company in the same manner and to the extent as if they were contained in the duly registered articles of the company.

(9) Section not apply on company registered under any previous company law: Nothing in this section shall apply to the articles of a company registered under any previous company law, unless amended under this Act.