NCJ Number
160668
Date Published
1995
Length
15 pages
Annotation
This critique of the doctrine of corporate criminal liability argues that although it is deeply embedded in the criminal justice systems of the United States, Canada, and Great Britain, it is almost unknown in civil law countries and serves no demonstrable purpose that could not be fulfilled equally well by more creative use of individual criminality.
Abstract
Six major arguments have been advanced to support the principle of corporate criminal liability. These are that (1) a corporate entity is distinctive form the sum of the persons who make up the organization, (2) punishing individuals rather than the corporate entity is ineffective, (3) corporations are more deterrable than individuals, (4) corporations can be more readily refashioned than can individuals, (5) corporations are easier targets for criminal prosecution, and (6) the corporation's greater assets make it a more affluent target. However, the alleged benefits of the principle at best are not proven and at worst are fallacious, mischievous, and socially harmful. Notes