A family business, when incorporated as a company, is an example of a private limited company. This means that the shares
are privately held and are not available for members of the investing public to buy and sell. This is in contrast to a public
company, which is listed on a stock exchange and in which members of the public, including private and institutional
shareholders, can purchase or sell shares. Being a public listed or public limited company carries a number of requirements,
imposed either by statute or the stock exchange, which do not apply to private companies. These requirements include
compliance with a number of corporate governance provisions which include the adoption of certain governance structures,
adherence with internal control and internal audit standards, and the external reporting of some types of information. A private
limited company, in contrast, must comply with company law and tax regulations, but is not subject to listing rules.
Mr Mara’s behaviour was highly unethical and also illegal, given the regulatory regime controlling surgical supplies in the
country in which he was based. His abuse of his office as CEO of Lysus was made possible by a number of failures, linked
in part to the nature and culture of the company.
The first such factor was the ‘tight-knit’ family culture which enabled the decision to be made and then go unchallenged
among the senior management including his wife, brother and Amy Tsang. The unwillingness to appoint from outside meant
that senior members of the company became familiar with Mr Mara’s management style and may, over time, have come to
consider his behaviour as ‘normal’. The fact that Mr Mara was such a domineering figure may have become accepted rather
than challenged by other directors, partly because of family ties and their prior knowledge of his character and management
style. The fact that the company was family-dominated may have made it difficult for others to confront Mr Mara about his
style as such an approach may have negatively affected family relationships.
