Prosecuting Corporations for Violations of International Criminal Law: Jurisdictional Issues

Prosecuting Corporations for Violations of International Criminal Law: Jurisdictional Issues (International Colloquium Section 4, Basel, 21-23 June 2018) Edited by S. Gless S. Broniszewska-Emdin

353 Pages Posted: 24 May 2019

See all articles by Sabine Gless

Sabine Gless

University of Basel

Sarah Wood

affiliation not provided to SSRN

Kenneth S. Gallant

University of Arkansas at Little Rock - William H. Bowen School of Law

Radha Ivory

Basel Institute on Governance; The University of Queensland, T.C. Beirne School of Law

Anna John

affiliation not provided to SSRN

Emma van Gelder

affiliation not provided to SSRN

Cedric Ryngaert

Utrecht University - School of Law

Dan Helenius

affiliation not provided to SSRN

Juliette Lelieur

University of Strasbourg

Martin Boese

affiliation not provided to SSRN

Gabriella Di Paolo

affiliation not provided to SSRN

Gleb Bogush

Moscow State University

Vitaly Beloborodov

affiliation not provided to SSRN

Mark Pieth

affiliation not provided to SSRN

Sara Sun Beale

Duke University School of Law

Sylwia Broniszewska-Emdin

University of Basel

Date Written: June 28, 2018

Abstract

This volume analyses the problems criminal justice systems face in addressing alleged corporate wrongdoing. Corporations, unlike human beings, are established in one state, engage in business in and out of that state, and may have subsidiaries and suppliers in other states. As such, holding them accountable for wrongdoing becomes a complicated transnational issue. A multitude of factors come into play within this topic, including the fact that corporate criminal liability is not yet a generally accepted phenomenon. Liability of corporate groups as entities and accountability for their supply chains as an aggregate are also ambiguous issues that have not been addressed in most criminal justice systems. Further, the applicability of prevailing jurisdictional rules to corporations remains unclear, particularly with respect to new notions of addressing legal persons as modern citizens, for instance when using the active personality principle of jurisdiction.

The special edition of an RIDP issue of 2017 focuses on jurisdictional questions with regard to criminal liability of enterprises. As the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights of 2011 oblige countries to establish a legal framework ensuring that corporations respect internationally protected legal interests and basic human rights when doing business abroad, it might have consequences for jurisdictional rules in criminal law. States shall provide a remedy for victims of alleged human rights violations by corporate groups, as well as crimes alleged to have occurred in their supply chains if certain conditions are met. Of particular interest is the establishment of the link between substantive law and the application of territorial jurisdiction. Also addressed in this issue is the need for potential enhancement of traditional jurisdictional rules, including the personality principle, to create a more clear and distinct assignment of jurisdiction to minimize the risk of negative conflicts of jurisdiction and provide efficient remedies to victims of alleged human rights abuses.

Country reports add to the general topic of corporate accountability through an analysis of national rules governing the reach of domestic penal power and how they establish liability for crimes committed by corporations along a supply chain. A General Report is based on all Country Reports submitted for the International Colloquium Section IV at the University of Basel on 2-4 June 2017.

This volume also includes the resolution adopted by the participants of the Basel colloquium. It thus offers a detailed synopsis of jurisdictional problems and possible solutions for viable corporate criminal liability along the supply chain. It illustrates the broad challenges raised by targeting corporations for allegedly causing harm in third countries with regard to territory and sovereignty in the age of globalisation.

Keywords: corporate company criminal liability, human rights violations, UN Guiding Principles, transnational jurisdiction, Ruggie Principles, Territoriality and Criminal Justice, Personality Principle, Directive 2014/95/EU, Strategic Litigation, universal jurisdiction, supply chain, multinational corporation

Suggested Citation

Gless, Sabine and Wood, Sarah and Gallant, Kenneth S. and Ivory, Radha and John, Anna and van Gelder, Emma and Ryngaert, Cedric and Helenius, Dan and Lelieur, Juliette and Boese, Martin and Di Paolo, Gabriella and Bogush, Gleb and Beloborodov, Vitaly and Pieth, Mark and Sun Beale, Sara and Broniszewska-Emdin, Sylwia, Prosecuting Corporations for Violations of International Criminal Law: Jurisdictional Issues (June 28, 2018). Prosecuting Corporations for Violations of International Criminal Law: Jurisdictional Issues (International Colloquium Section 4, Basel, 21-23 June 2018) Edited by S. Gless S. Broniszewska-Emdin , Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3204487

Sabine Gless (Contact Author)

University of Basel ( email )

Petersplatz 1
Basel, CH-4003
Switzerland

Sarah Wood

affiliation not provided to SSRN

Kenneth S. Gallant

University of Arkansas at Little Rock - William H. Bowen School of Law ( email )

1201 McMath Street
Little Rock, AR 72202
United States
501-269-2319 (Phone)

Radha Ivory

Basel Institute on Governance ( email )

Steinenring 60
Basel, 4051
Switzerland

The University of Queensland, T.C. Beirne School of Law ( email )

The University of Queensland
St Lucia
4072 Brisbane, Queensland 4072
Australia

Anna John

affiliation not provided to SSRN

Emma Van Gelder

affiliation not provided to SSRN

Cedric Ryngaert

Utrecht University - School of Law ( email )

3508 TC Utrecht
Utrecht
Netherlands

Dan Helenius

affiliation not provided to SSRN

Juliette Lelieur

University of Strasbourg ( email )

61, avenue de la foret noire
Strasbourg, Alsace 3000
France

Martin Boese

affiliation not provided to SSRN

Gabriella Di Paolo

affiliation not provided to SSRN

Gleb Bogush

Moscow State University ( email )

GSP-2, Leninskie Gory
Moscow, 119992
Russia

Vitaly Beloborodov

affiliation not provided to SSRN

Mark Pieth

affiliation not provided to SSRN

No Address Available

Sara Sun Beale

Duke University School of Law ( email )

210 Science Drive
Box 90362
Durham, NC 27708
United States
919-613-7091 (Phone)
919-613-7231 (Fax)

Sylwia Broniszewska-Emdin

University of Basel ( email )

Petersplatz 1
Basel, CH-4003
Switzerland

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