LEGAL ROUTE Maritime companies law proyect

Se pretende a la vez que haya un control más eficiente y fiscalización de aquellos abogados o firmas de abogados que pretendan asumir ese rol. Se necesita un control reputacional y esto se deberá reglamentar con sumo cuidado, según ha sido parte de las discusiones sostenidas con el Director del RPN.

El proyecto contempla en sus artículos 12 y siguientes normas específicas sobre gobernanza, que incluyen la adaptabilidad al régimen legal que se imponga de tiempo en tiempo en esta materia, incluyendo los temas contables y otros registros.

También contempla un elemento de responsabilidad en materia financiera que obliga a la Sociedad a considerar su situación en caso de insolvencia, y se ha elaborado con precisión lo concerniente a la disolución y liquidación, versus las normas que rigen estas figuras para los otros tipos de sociedades, entre otros aspectos.

DEBIDO CUMPLIMIENTO Y EL AGENTE REGISTRADO.

Hay un cambio de relevancia en lo que ahora sería un agente registrado, quien también se constituiría en un representante para notificaciones en general, y, al que, entre otras facultades, se le confiere el control del registro de acciones con facultades de dar fe sobre las actuaciones de la sociedad, simplificando el proceso de gestión de éstas ante el registro público.

Para ello también se han reforzado las obligaciones y grado de diligencia que deben tener estos, su inscripción en un registro especial dentro del RPN y se ha planteado la creación de un manual de buenas prácticas como elemento vinculante.

Por su parte y en atención a la necesidad de más transparencia y seguridad jurídica en cuanto a los procesos de toma de decisiones y registros de la sociedad ante las exigencias que las normas sobre transparencia imponen cada vez con más rigurosidad; se le confiere mayor inherencia en el control de tales registros, incluyendo el registro de acciones, y la gobernanza corporativa, para darle mayor preponderancia ante las obligaciones sobre conocimiento del cliente.

SIMPLICIDAD Y VANGUARDIA EN LOS TRÁMITES.

Toda vez que el proyecto de ley contempla una mayor seguridad jurídica en cuanto a los accionistas y procesos de control en los registros de la Sociedad, se contempla que los trámites se puedan realizar incluso en documento privado.

Por el hecho de que el proyecto es en buena parte un refuerzo de lo que ya le impone a los abogados la Ley 23 del 27 de abril de 2015, mediante la cual se adoptan medidas para prevenir el blanqueo de capitales, el financiamiento del terrorismo y el financiamiento de la proliferación de armas de destrucción masiva y dicta otras disposiciones, consideramos que esas exigencias nos permiten trasladar a los agentes registrados, mucha de la fe pública consistente en la autenticidad de las actuaciones y documentos que tradicionalmente se ha confiado a los notarios.

Con ello, también es la intención centralizar los canales de interacción, reducir los procesos que le restan competitividad a nuestro registro de sociedades actual y que sirva de posible modelo para asistir en el proceso de recuperación de la confianza, que mucho se ha perdido por razón de las listas de organismos internacionales como la OCDE y GAFI.

CONCLUSIÓN.

Considero necesario que este proyecto de Ley sobre Sociedades Marítimas se lleve a ejecución prontamente, que el momento es propicio para hacerlo y que la necesidad de un mejor ambiente legal en torno a las personas jurídicas panameñas, es inminente.

Considerations regarding the draft Law on Maritime Companies – As a cutting-edge legal tool, with simplified administrative processes, but with a high degree of transparency and attention to due compliance, for corporate governance in tune with the needs of the maritime industry and the demands of the current times.

MARITIME COMPANIES LAW PROJECT

BY: JORGE LOAIZA III / PARTNER OF THE FIRM ARIAS, FABREGA & FABREGA - ARIFA

After 58 arduous work sessions of a commission made up of members of the Panamanian Association of Maritime Law and the team of the director of the General Directorate of the Public Registry of Ships of the Panama Maritime Authority (AMP), it was achieved by the end of May of 2021, the draft of the Law on Maritime Companies, composed of 129 articles.

That same commission, in which the undersigned had a continuous and constant participation, prepared the project of today’s Executive Decree No. 159 of March 3, 2021, which organizes and regulates the operations of the Public Registry of Ships (RPN) and repealed the Executive Decree No. 259 of March 31, 2011.

With this article, I intend to expose some points that I consider essential to understand the relevance that the adoption of the Law could have for the country, sooner rather than later.

What is the legal nature of the Maritime Company?

When preparing the project, we thought of a scenario that would offer the entity the possibility of being configured as a public limited company or, as occurs with the limited liability company, making the share registry public. In any case, the issuance of bearer shares would not be permitted.

Regarding the Company’s objects, their maritime nature has been specified to distinguish it from a company with other commercial activities that are not linked to the industry or directly supported by it.

The Maritime Company can carry out all kinds of processes, including its merger, change of jurisdiction and change of type of company.

It is not exclusive for the registration of ships or maritime activities in Panama.

What is relevant is that the loss of the maritime activity as an object implies ipso jure the termination of the maritime society as such.

This project aims to offer the national and international maritime community an “elite” legal structure for managing their businesses, with transparency, but in an agile and practical manner, including the disposal and administration of their assets.

Why in the Panama Maritime Authority?

One of the important aspects of the aforementioned Bill is that it contemplates the registration and payment of the registration fees for documents and annuities of these entities in the RPN.

As you will remember, when Law No. 33 of 2010 included a single rule (Article 37) through which all registry operations corresponding to Panamanian registry vessels were transferred from the Public Registry of Panama to the AMP, there was consternation among many colleagues for the possible legal uncertainty, which had a solution with the creation of “mirror” regulations and the creation of the RPN. Currently, we are sure that the change was for a marked improvement, considering that definitive registrations can be made, including public deeds, outside of working hours, as well as the issuance of certificates, directly in the RPN and even via email, which represents a significant advance in terms of efficiency in the face of fierce competition from other growing registries internationally.

In addition, it should be considered that fundable maritime projects are also subject to registration in the RPN, as stipulated in Law No.50 of June 28, 2017, which creates a legal regime of incentives for Maritime Financing Entities, Maritime Projects and dictates other provisions and in Executive Decree No. 168 of June 10, 2019 that regulates it, (as a whole Law No. 50).

For this reason, we feel confident that including Maritime Companies as entities that can be registered with the RPN will offer a better functional situation for transactions that involve or require the same type of streamlining that the maritime industry demands worldwide.

TRANSPARENT CORPORATE GOVERNANCE, PERFORMANCE AND CONTROLS.

It has been considered relevant to include a compendium of rules that determine how the Company acts, with the minimum number of shareholders and directors and unit dignitaries, but with the incorporation of the concept of “legal representative”; with its own definition, considering that the term is certainly diffuse and lacking in certainty in the rest of the national legal system.

What is intended is that there is always a person who can answer for the affairs of the Company.

We have placed emphasis on simplifying notifications for meetings and other actions, while also guaranteeing that rights are not infringed in cases where there are several people who make up the governance bodies.

The issuance of shares is an act that must occur with the incorporation, with the respective manifestation of it, which avoids the use of “shell” companies or, as they are known in the English language: “shelf companies”.

At the same time, it is intended that there be a more efficient control and supervision of those lawyers or law firms that intend to assume that role. Reputational control is needed and this should be regulated with great care, as has been part of the discussions held with the Director of the RPN.

DUE COMPLIANCE AND REGISTERED AGENT.

There is a relevant change in what would now be a registered agent, who would also become a representative for notifications in general, and who, among other powers, is conferred control of the share registry with powers to attest to the actions of the company, simplifying the process of managing them before the public registry.

To this end, the obligations and degree of diligence that they must have have been reinforced, their registration in a special register within the RPN and the creation of a manual of good practices as a binding element has been proposed.

For its part, and in response to the need for more transparency and legal certainty in terms of decision-making processes and records of society in the face of the demands that the rules on transparency impose with increasing rigor; it is conferred greater influence on the control of such registries, including the registry of shares, and corporate governance, to give it greater preponderance over the obligations regarding knowledge of the client.

SIMPLICITY AND AVANT-GARDE IN THE PROCEDURES.

Since the bill contemplates greater legal certainty in terms of shareholders and control processes in the Company’s records, it is contemplated that the procedures can be carried out even in a private document.

Due to the fact that the project is largely a reinforcement of what is already imposed on lawyers by Law 23 of April 27, 2015, through which measures are adopted to prevent money laundering, the financing of terrorism and the financing of the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and dictates other provisions, we consider that these demands allow us to transfer to the registered agents, much of the public faith consisting of the authenticity of the proceedings and documents that have traditionally been entrusted to notaries.

With this, it is also the intention to centralize the channels of interaction, reduce the processes that reduce the competitiveness of our current company registry and serve as a possible model to assist in the process of recovering trust, which has been lost due to from the lists of international organizations such as the OECD and FATF.

CONCLUSION.

I consider it necessary that this draft Law on Maritime Companies be carried out promptly, that the time is right to do so and that the need for a better legal environment around Panamanian legal entities is imminent.