Companies House

Companies Act 2006 – Model Articles

For new companies registered on or after 1 October 2009, Table A has been replaced by the Companies Act 2006 Model Articles, in line with the Companies (Model Articles) Regulations 2008

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Welsh Language Model Articles

Table A

1. What is “Table A”?

Table A is simply the name given to the prescribed format for Articles of Association of a company limited by shares under the Companies Act 1985 and earlier legislation. The Articles set out the regulations by which the company will be managed. The first prescribed format of Articles was made in “The Joint Stock Companies Act, 1856”. In this Act, the Articles were called “Table B” (simply because they were preceded by a form of Memorandum of Association called “Form A”). At the next prescription, which happened in 1862, the Memorandum was moved into the body of the Act and the Articles became “Table A”. This naming convention for the Articles continued through legislation introduced in 1906, 1908, 1929, 1948 (and amendments made in 1967, 1976, 1980, 1981), and July 1985 (and amendments made in August 1985 and 2000) and in 2007.

2. Why would I need to refer to a “Table A”?

When a company limited by shares is incorporated, it does not need to file Articles if it wishes to use Table A as its Articles. In this case, if you search the records of a company limited by shares you may not find a document setting out its Articles. Certain provisions of Table A may also apply to a company which has filed Articles, if the company’s Articles have not specifically excluded or modified Table A. In either case, if you want to see the regulations that govern the management of the company, you need to refer to the relevant Table A.

3. Which Table A is relevant to a particular company?

The Table A which applies to a company is the Table A in force at the date of the company’s incorporation. If Table A was subsequently altered, the changes do not affect a company registered before the alteration took effect. To be sure you are reading the correct Table A, you need to know the date of incorporation of the company and which version of Table A was in force on that date.

The following list shows the effective date of each Table A.

Disclaimer

Please note that the Tables A provided here have been reproduced from the original published Acts, Order or Instruments listed above and are to the best of our knowledge and belief correct. However, Companies House accepts no responsibility for any errors or omissions. Reliance should be placed solely on the relevant legislation as published by Office of Public Sector Information (OPSI) (formerly known as Her Majesty’s Stationery Office (HMSO).