IndexThe rights of directorsThe rights of independent directorsShareholders' rightsAccording to company law in China, directors are elected by the shareholders' meeting. Furthermore, in listed companies, the existence of independent directors is permitted. Independent directors must be independent of the listed company that employs them and of the company's major shareholders. An independent director cannot hold any other position in the listed company. But in non-public companies, independent directors are prohibited in China. First let's talk about the responsibilities and rights of ordinary directors in Chinese companies.1) The responsibilities and duties of directors. In the “Code of Corporate Governance for Listed Companies in China”, the responsibilities and duties of directors are set out as follows: Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essayDirectors should do their best to carry out their duties for the entire company and the interests of shareholders. They too, therefore, must guarantee sufficient time and energy to carry out their tasks. The directors are required to participate in meetings of the board of directors and express opinions with responsibility and diligence. And when they are unable to attend the meeting, the director can give the permission to vote to another director, but the director who grants the permission should be responsible for the vote. Administrators must strictly comply with relevant laws, regulations, articles and rules. Administrators should improve their skills and become familiar with the relevant laws, regulations, articles and rules by attending relevant training courses. If the resolutions of the board of directors violate relevant laws, regulations, articles and rules and lead to large losses for the company, the directors who are responsible for adopting such resolutions should be required to compensate, except those who have proven objective. The rights of directors According to the company law, some articles explain the rights of directors as follows: The right to participate in the meeting of the board of directors directors have the right to attend meetings of the board of directors to discuss the solution of certain related problems to the management of the company. The right to vote at meetings of the board of directors When directors discuss certain issues at meetings of the board of directors, each director may have the right to one vote. Right to convene and chair an interim meeting of the board of directors According to company law, Article 110 "Shareholders representing more than one tenth of the voting rights, plus less than one third of all directors, or the supervisory board may propose to convene an interim meeting of the Board of Directors. The Chairman of the Board of Directors has the right to convene and chair an interim meeting of the Board of Directors within ten days of receiving the proposal."The right to receive liability insurance civil After the approval of the shareholders' meeting, a listed company can purchase civil liability insurance for directors. But such insurance does not cover liabilities due to violations by the directors of the laws, regulations or articles of association of the company. The right to manage and to be informed Directors have the right tomanage the company and should be informed of the operating situation of the companies and obtain the necessary materials before the meeting they are supposed to attend. The responsibilities and duties of independent directorsAs stated in the “Corporate Governance Code for Listed Companies in China”, independent directors should not only be accountable to the company and shareholders, but also perform their duties in accordance with laws, relevant regulations and articles of association. Furthermore, they should also protect the interests of the company and shareholders, especially minority shareholders. Furthermore, independent directors should not "submit themselves to the influence of the company's main shareholders, effective controllers or other entities or persons who are interested parties of the listed company". The rights of independent directors Except for the management of companies, independent directors have almost the same rights as other directors. But they have another special right, which is to independently hire external audit and consultancy institutions. Please note: this is just an example. Get a custom paper from our expert writers now. Get a Custom EssayShareholder RightsAccording to the “Corporate Governance Code for Listed Companies in China” and the “Company Law of the People's Republic of China (2014)”, as owners of a company, shareholders “can enjoy the legal rights provided by the laws , by the administrative regulations and bylaws of the company. And the listed company should have a corporate governance structure sufficient to guarantee the full exercise of shareholder rights". benefit as follows: The right to formulate the company's articles of association - Co-benefit rights When the shareholders or the effective controller form a limited liability company, the shareholders have the right to jointly draw up the company's articles of association Right to intervene in matters important and to be informed - Co-benefit rights Shareholders have the right to participate in important meetings, such as the general meeting, as well as the right to be informed of the most important matters of the companies. Voting Rights - Co-benefit Rights In the shareholder meeting, shareholders can exercise their voting rights to make decisions on some important things based on their potential shares. The right of inspection - Co-rights to benefits According to company law, article 33 states: “The shareholders of a company have the right to examine and reproduce the company's articles of association, the minutes of the meetings, the resolutions of the board of administration, the resolutions of the supervisory board and the financial and accounting reports of the company. Shareholders can ask to inspect the company's books. "The right of first refusal - Self-profit rights" With respect to any shareholding to be transferred with the consent of the shareholders, shareholders other than the transferring party will have the right of first refusal under precisely the same conditions. If two or more shareholders claim to exercise their right of pre-emption, they shall determine the proportional ratio of the purchase through consultation. If the consultation fails, the right of first refusal will be exercised in proportion to the respective capital injection at the time of the transfer. "(Article 71, Company Law) The right to be treated fairly - Rights of personal benefit As the Corporate Governance Code for Listed Companies in China states, the company should treat all shareholders equally, especially shareholders.”