By DITA DE BONI
The takeovers panel has existed in some form since 1991. Originally an advisory committee, it was made a body corporate by the Takeovers Act of 1993, wrote the takeovers code in 1995 and disappeared from view after the code was shelved.
Now that the Government has introduced the
takeovers code, the panel's current incarnation must implement it.
The panel must have "not less than five and not more than eight members" appointed by the Minister of Commerce.
The present eight-member panel met yesterday to decide the fate of Lion Nathan's two-tiered offer for Montana.
Chairing the panel was John King, a senior partner with law firm Russell McVeagh. Mr King is a director of Telecom and a member of Westpac Banking Corporation's advisory board.
Deputy chairman David Jones is a principal at the law firm Jones and Young and has been deputy chairman since 1994. He was heavily involved in drafting the new code.
Panel member Alistair Lawrence is a principal in private investment bank Antipodes. An investment banker for 23 years, Mr Lawrence has been on the panel since 1995.
Daphne Rawstorne, like Mr Lawrence appointed to a three-year term on the panel, has been a managing partner of Deloitte Touche Tomatsu for six years.
Kevin O'Connor, also appointed to a three-year term, is a company director and chairs the Stock Exchange's market surveillance panel.
Appointed recently to five-year terms are Colin Giffney, former managing director of JBWere, and founding member of the market surveillance panel and lawyer David Quigg.
Mr Quigg specialises in corporate governance issues and has previously given public comment on behalf of the market surveillance panel's standing committee.
The takeovers panel enforces the takeovers code and the standing committee issues judgments on the Stock Exchange's listing rules as they apply in specific instances.
The Montana Standing Committee, comprising Bill Wilson QC, retired Court of Appeal judge Sir Duncan McMullin, and retired High Court judge Sir Ian Barker, meets when required.
