The Taipei District Court has appointed three temporary managers to take over Taiwan International Securities, marking the first ever government takeover in the island's securities business. The district court said Tuesday it made the decision based on the Company Act as the securities company has plunged into a power struggle after two factions of its majority shareholders both claimed to have won elections for board members and supervisors at the annual general meeting held last June. One faction was led by the Koo family, who run China Development Financial Holding, and the other was supported by the chief executive of Taiwan International Securities Group, Chang Ping-chao. Due to the election disputes, the Department of Commerce under the Ministry of Economic Affairs declined to accept the list of newly elected board members and supervisors presented by Chang's faction. Meanwhile, China Development Financial filed a petition with the district court asking it to hand down an injunction barring Chang's group from running the securities firm. The district court said the management disputes have disrupted the securities firm's day-to-day operations And even worse, as the firm is a listed company, the disputes have also affected market order, it added. The takeover petition was initiated by a prosecutor at the Taipei District Prosecutors' Office under the Company Act, which stipulates that if a company's board members and supervisors fail or are unable to exercise power to an extent to which they threaten company, the court may appoint one or more temporary managers to take over operations. The three temporary managers include Chu Chao-chuan, a former chairman of the Securities and Futures Investor Protection Center. Apart from the temporary manager appointments, the district has also issued an injunction prohibiting Chang's son from exercising power as the company chairman. Taiwan International Securities declined to comment on the ruling until receiving a written decision, but said it will respect the court's ruling. 