Primary Purpose of Laws Governing Corporate Responsibility

Primary Purpose of Laws Governing Corporate Responsibility

Introduction

John Boatright, in his writing, claims that the laws governing corporate responsibility have a primary purpose to deter against crime. This concept is accepted and rejected by various professionals. The two schools of thought argue based on various theories and observations. In some cases, this can prove true while it can prove the opposite in some circumstances. Overall, based on the theories of deterrence, it can be claimed that these laws serve their purpose.

Discussion

The primary goal of deterrence is to influence managers, CEO's and people in change of some major decision making in organizations. Powerful deterrents are those which guarantee punishment in the event of a law being broken by the corporation. According to laws, anyone involved in crime would be punished accordingly (Detscher, 2007). This is highly unrealistic since it is not possible to determine every crime and punish the wrongdoers. In most cases, the person involved in fraud in organizations cannot be tracked if the structure does not allow.

Due to this, lawyers, judges, criminologists, philosophers, and others have argued whether or not these laws serve as a deterrent. One important consideration is that the person involved in the activity should know about the crime before it is committed. In case the person is not aware he is committing a crime, it would be unjust to punish him. On the other hand, people would claim that they did not know about the crime. Therefore, it is difficult to determine whether or not a person is guilty. This will lead to unjust decisions being made.

Most wrongful acts are committed at a time when the person is not mentally sound due to pressure and outside influence. Thus, people argue that some crimes can never be deterred. Apart from these people, ...