NCJ Number
126646
Journal
Criminal Law Forum Volume: 1 Issue: 2 Dated: (Winter 1990) Pages: 211-258
Date Published
1990
Length
48 pages
Annotation
The sanctions currently available against the corporate entity are often ineffectual, as the prosecution is frequently unable to obtain convictions against corporate personnel or owners.
Abstract
The common law has traditionally resorted to fines and other monetary sanctions which corporations tend to regard as an insignificant cost of doing business. The proposed codifications can and should develop a range of powerful punishments to address the entire spectrum of corporate crime. A major weakness of monetary sanctions against corporations is the unwillingness of courts and legislators to set fines and penalties high enough to provide a real deterrent. Also, fines do not emphatically convey the message that serious corporate offenses are socially intolerable. More promising alternative sanctions include stock dilution (equity fines), probation and punitive injunctions, adverse publicity, and community service. These approaches are promising because they increase the variety of deterrent, retributive, and rehabilitative measures available against corporations and in so doing circumvent some of the major limitations of monetary sanctions. 167 footnotes