The Companies Act 2008 provides that certain provisions of a shareholders agreement are invalid if they is inconsistent with either the Companies Act (2008) and/or with the Memorandum of Incorporation (MOI) of the Company. This makes it vitally important to prepare the Memorandum of Incorporation and the Shareholder Agreement together, so that they are entirely consistent.
If you have an outdated shareholder agreement, it is important to note that it needs to be updated to address changes that arise out of the 2008 Companies Act. If you do not have a shareholder agreement, this is the perfect place to start.
Apart from technical compliance with the Companies Act, a valid and binding shareholders agreement is fundamentally important. Disputes that arise between shareholders and directors have the ability to destroy companies. The shareholders agreement (and MOI) regulates the relationship between shareholders themselves, as well as between shareholders and the company.