Corporations have considerable power in society, which predisposes them to many legal issues. A prominent legal issue deals with the corporate veil and its tendencies to shield corporate leader’s criminal activities. Instead of corporate leaders receiving repercussions, the corporate entity is penalized. This essay will discuss the legal issue of corporate corruption by examining the realism, functionalism, post-structuralism and corporate neoliberalism sociological theories, and the implications surrounding living law, law reform, legal practice and human services.
Corporations as People: Canadian Business Corporations Act
According to the Canadian Business Corporations Act, “A corporation has the capacity and, subject to this Act, the rights, …show more content…
Corporations have ‘limited liability’ which means those with ownerships are only liable monetarily for what they have invested in the business. It protects people by separating those who own and manage corporations from lawsuits, debts, and obligations corporations can incur. However, this distinction can lead to negative results of ‘corporate responsibility’, as the people behind the corporation are essentially not fully accountable for the corporation’s wrongful ‘actions’. Corporate crime is a common occurrence in Canada due to concealing individual’s responsibility behind the legal corporate …show more content…
Corruption can take many forms such as acceptance of money and rewards, violating procedures for personal advancements, bribery of the public sector, tax fraud or misuse, theft, overlooking illegal events, or any other activities to help with personal interests (UN, 1990). The extent to which the public sector deals with, accepts, or in many cases ‘overlooks’ corruption, has to do with the amount of influence the entity has on society. Kahn’s functionalist theory on corruption states, “Corruption has been and continues to be an integral part of culture. The level of corruption varies depending on how influential a position the particular civil servant holds” (Khan, 1997). In today’s society, having money leads to power, therefore making it an influential asset. Multi-million dollar corporations have extreme wealth, which can entice corporate crime, and have the power to escape or minimize
Corporations as People: Canadian Business Corporations Act
According to the Canadian Business Corporations Act, “A corporation has the capacity and, subject to this Act, the rights, …show more content…
Corporations have ‘limited liability’ which means those with ownerships are only liable monetarily for what they have invested in the business. It protects people by separating those who own and manage corporations from lawsuits, debts, and obligations corporations can incur. However, this distinction can lead to negative results of ‘corporate responsibility’, as the people behind the corporation are essentially not fully accountable for the corporation’s wrongful ‘actions’. Corporate crime is a common occurrence in Canada due to concealing individual’s responsibility behind the legal corporate …show more content…
Corruption can take many forms such as acceptance of money and rewards, violating procedures for personal advancements, bribery of the public sector, tax fraud or misuse, theft, overlooking illegal events, or any other activities to help with personal interests (UN, 1990). The extent to which the public sector deals with, accepts, or in many cases ‘overlooks’ corruption, has to do with the amount of influence the entity has on society. Kahn’s functionalist theory on corruption states, “Corruption has been and continues to be an integral part of culture. The level of corruption varies depending on how influential a position the particular civil servant holds” (Khan, 1997). In today’s society, having money leads to power, therefore making it an influential asset. Multi-million dollar corporations have extreme wealth, which can entice corporate crime, and have the power to escape or minimize