The Board of Directors of the Société Anonyme is its body, which is responsible for its management and representation. Its existence is provided and its operation is governed by law (basically: articles 77-115 law 4548/18). It acts, in principle, collectively. The principle of collective action, however, is not without its exceptions; it is therefore subject to divergence. The Board of Directors is, by its nature – as already mentioned, an instrument of the SA. Its members, as members of a collective body, are considered to be linked, respectively, with an organic relationship with the SA. The relationship of the Board member with the SA is twofold. It is distinguished (: “theory of separation”) into external-organic and internal-subjective. We will be concerned at this time with the provision of additional services to the SA by the member of the Board of Directors, regardless of their organic position and relationship: on the basis of a “special relationship”. By contracts, indicatively, of employment, works, independent services or mandate.
The special relationship between board member and SA
We often find, in practice, that the members of the Board of Directors provide additional services to the SA – especially in the context of the family SA. These are services that go beyond the narrow confines of its administration – as defined by law. They are, in other words, outside the framework of the narrowly defined duties of the members of the Board of Directors (as members, ie, of the specific body of the SA). These services are provided in the context of a “special relationship” (: article 109 par. 3 law 4548/2018). This specific relationship may include, for example, the type of contracts of employment, works, independent services or mandate. In any case, the correct legal characterization of this special relationship is (also) left, as we have already analyzed, to the judgement of the courts.
With special reference to the specific (“special”) relationship, the legislator explicitly confirms the possibility of concluding such contracts, in order to remove any (possibly existing) relevant doubts. And even more: it demonstrates their difference (of these contracts and relationships) from the relationship that connects the members of the Board of Directors with the company due to their election or appointment. It confirms, in other words, that these are parallel relationships. Also: completely distinct relationships-based on their content.
The content of the special relationship
The content of the parallel (and special) contractual relationship that can be concluded by the member of the Board is, as already mentioned, the provision of (any) additional services. Its content is contrasted, in this way, with the content of the organic relationship that connects the SA with the member of its Board of Directors. The (organic) relationship that is determined by the law or the articles of association of the SA.
The content of the specific, additional, services (and the related special relationship and contract) may be, inter alia, that of the legal, financial or technical consultant. The most common: the provision of services of an executive that usually results from a contract of employment concluded by the member of the Board of Directors with the SA.
The difficulty of distinguishing the two relationships and qualities (member of the Board of Directors vs employee / provider of services in the SA) depends on their scope and content. This distinction turns out to be easier when the member simply participates in the Board of Directors, without being individually in charge of exercising (organic) power of administration, management and / or representation. On the contrary, when the member of the Board acts as a substitute body, that is, when the powers of the Board have been transferred in whole or in part, the distinction does not seem easy. In fact, in cases where the content of the special legal relationship concerns the management of the company and not just a field of action, the difficulties of discrimination are multiplied.
The distinction, however, of the individual, aforementioned, relations seems absolutely necessary. This is because the regulations reserved by Law 4548/2018 on the conclusion and operation of the special relationship that connects the SA with the member of its Board of Directors, are different from those that govern their organic position (as a member of the Board).
The special relationship as a transaction of the SA with a related party
The members of the Board of Directors are included in those that the law identifies as parties related to the SA (:”parties”). The SA’s transactions with related parties are now regulated in articles 99-101 of law 4548/2018 (as they replaced the well-known article 23a of law 2190/1920). These are transactions with those parties who, due to their position, are likely to influence the content of these transactions based on their own interest. It was therefore deemed necessary to provide a regulatory framework aimed at protecting the SA. The above transactions reasonably include the conclusion of any special relationship (indicatively: employment, works, independent services or mandate contract) of the SA with a member of its Board.
The conditions for concluding a special contract with related parties
For the valid conclusion of a contract of the SA with related parties (and in this case, a special employment, works, independent services or mandate contract with members of the Board) the observance of a series of procedural rules and publicity rules is necessary (articles 100 and 101 of Law 4548/2018 ). These rules, in the light of the conclusion of a special contract of a member of the Board of Directors with a non-listed SA, are analyzed below:
(a) The granting of a license
In General
According to paragraph 1 of article 100 of law 4548/2018: “the license to establish a transaction of the company with a related party or to provide collateral and guarantees to third parties in favor of the related party … is provided by a decision of the Board of Directors…”. The license granted is valid for a period of six months.
The license must be special (article 99 of law 4548/2018). This means that the conclusion of the special contract should be included in the agenda of the meeting of the Board. In addition: its content (especially its financial object and its duration) must be submitted to the decision of the body responsible for granting the license (indicatively: 1990/2018 Court of Appeal of Thessaloniki).
The Board of Directors is the competent body for issuing the license. In fact, the possibility of further assignment of the specific competence is explicitly excluded (article 100 par. 2 law 4548/2018). This provision of the legislator introduces an innovation in relation to the previous regime, which granted competence to the General Assembly (article 23a of law 2120/1920). In the justifications of the specific choice of the legislator, the fastest and simplest control procedure by the BoD is considered. In addition, the Board, due to its managerial powers, is considered the most appropriate body of the SA to recognize the benefit or not of the conclusion of contracts (as such: the contract of employment, works, independent services or mandate).
The competence of the General Assembly at the request of shareholders
In the event that the Board of Directors grants permission for the conclusion of a special relationship between the SA and a member of its BoD, it is obliged to announce its decision to the General Commercial Registry. Within ten (10) days from this announcement, shareholders of the SA representing 1/20 of the capital are entitled to request the convening of a General Assembly, in order for the latter to make a decision on the issue of granting a license. In fact, it is possible to (statutorily) reduce this percentage.
Any transaction with an affiliated person, for which permission has been granted by the Board of Directors, is considered valid from the beginning, but it is subject to suspensory condition. In other words, either the aforementioned ten-day deadline must pass without any actions taken or the decisive responsibility is assumed by the General Assembly due to a request of 1/20 of the shareholders of the SA. In the latter case, the license for the transaction must ultimately be granted by the General Assembly. This license is not granted if shareholders representing 1/3 of the share capital object (article 100 §5 of law 4548/18-as in force, after modification of the initial wording of the provision, which provided for non-participation of related parties in the formation of a quorum and majority, after our own public intervention).
The competence of the General Assembly in the absence of a quorum of the General Assembly
As we have analyzed in our previous articles, the law deprives a member of the Board of Directors of the right to vote on issues in which a conflict of interests arises between them (or the related parties) and the SA. Such a case is the conclusion of a special relationship between the member of the Board of Directors and the SA. Therefore, the other members of the Board of Directors make the necessary relevant decision. However, the exclusion from the voting may concern so many members that the remaining ones do not form a quorum. In this case, the remaining members (regardless of their number) are responsible for convening the General Assembly (to make a decision on granting permission to enter into a special relationship).
(b) Adherence to the publicity process
In order to complete the process of granting a license for the conclusion of a special contract of the SA with a member of the Board of Directors, it is required to observe the publicity provided by law. In particular, according to article 101 of law 4548/2018: “The Board of Directors announces the issuance of a license for the preparation of a transaction either by itself or by the General Assembly, as well as the expiration of the deadline of paragraph 3 of Article 100 (ie the above mentioned ten-day deadline) …”. This announcement is submitted to publicity (: posting in the General Commercial Registry) before the completion of the transaction. At the same time, paragraph 2 of the same article sets out the minimum content that the above announcement must have.
Exceptions to the obligation to issue a license
The case of current transactions
The obligation to grant a license is redundant in the event that the transaction (in this case the contract of the SA with the member of its Board of Directors) falls under the current transactions. Current transactions are defined, in article 99 §3 a’ of law 4548/2018, as “… those that are normal in relation to the operations and the object of the business activity of the company, in terms of their type and size and are concluded under market conditions”. In addition, according to the case law formulated under the pre-existing legal regime, a current transaction means “… that which, by its object, falls under the contracts drawn up in the context of the company’s day-to-day operations, ie whose terms are the usual terms of the contracts the company enters into with other traders. ” (1245/2018 Supreme Court).
The case of the pre-existing contract
A different case of exclusion from the licensing process is that in which a member of the Board of Directors is associated with the SA with a contract of employment, works, independent services or mandate, concluded before their election (or appointment) (1364/1990 Supreme Court, 21/2019 Single Member Court of First Instance of Volos). An issue, however, arises when the pre-existing contract is amended, after the election / appointment of the member of the Board of Directors (: eg. increase of the agreed fees). Depending on the content of the amended terms of these contracts (of employment, works, independent services or mandate), their prior approval by the competent body may be necessary.
The remuneration of the members of the BoD on the basis of their special relationship / contract
The members of the Board of Directors who have concluded an employment, works, independent services or mandate contract with the SA are, reasonably, entitled to receive remuneration – precisely on the basis of that contract. The specific remuneration is granted cumulatively with the (possible) remuneration received by the member of the BoD due to his / her organic position (ie, as a member of the BoD). These are fees which, although coming from the same SA and going to the same person, have different legal treatment. Thus, the fee from the special relationship / contract does not require prior regulation by law or the articles of association. It does not require its approval by the General Assembly (109 §1, Law 4548/2018) – in contrast to the remuneration that may be granted under the organic position. In fact, the law (article 109 §3, law 4548/2018) explicitly excludes the remuneration agreed on the basis of the special contract from the procedure and the conditions for granting remuneration to the members of the Board of directors of article 109 of law 4548/2018.
Each member of the Board may, therefore, have a second capacity within the SA: the one that connects them with an additional relationship (employment, works, independent services or mandate) with the company. The two properties / legal relations (organic and special) are (and must remain) completely distinct. The first (organic) is governed, exclusively, by the mandatory provisions of the Law of Société Anonymes. On the contrary, the regulatory framework of the second (special) relationship is additionally governed by Civil (or Labor) Law regulations-depending on the contractual type which is chosen each time (mainly on the basis of tax and insurance advantages) and to which, in the end, it falls under.
However, the separation of the qualities of the shareholder, the member of the Board of Directors and the employee / provider of services in the SA is important for a number of other reasons. Some of them have already occupied us in our articles (including: the need to separate the fees and finances of the entrepreneur / board member from the company’s fund, the use of the facilities provided by the law on SAs in terms of liquidity from businessmen / members of the Board).
However, the separation of the above-mentioned qualities seems necessary on the basis of alignment with the (not typically necessary for non-listed companies, but substantially absolutely necessary) corporate governance rules.
Rules necessary for the transition to the new era ˙ to the next day.-
Stavros Koumentakis
Managing Partner
P.S. A brief version of this article has been published in MAKEDONIA Newspaper (March 14, 2021).
Disclaimer: the information provided in this article is not (and is not intended to) constitute legal advice. Legal advice can only be offered by a competent attorney and after the latter takes into consideration all the relevant to your case data that you will provide them with. See here for more details.