Corporate Personhood

Description

The topic of corporate personhood has captured the attention of many who are concerned about the increasing presence, power, and influence of corporations in modern society. Recent Supreme Court cases like Citizens United, Hobby Lobby, and Masterpiece Cakeshop - which solidified the free speech and religious liberty rights of corporations and their owners - have heightened the controversy over treating corporations as persons under the law. What does it mean to say that the corporation is a person, and why does it matter? In Corporate Personhood, Susanna Kim Ripken addresses these questions and highlights the complexity of the corporate personhood concept. Using a broad, interdisciplinary framework - incorporating law, economics, philosophy, sociology, psychology, organizational theory, political science, and linguistics - this highly original work explores the complex, multidimensional nature of corporate personhood and its implications for corporate rights and duties.

Susanna Kim Ripken is a Professor of Law at the Fowler School of Law, Chapman University, California, with a joint appointment in the Wilkinson College of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences. She teaches business law courses and has published several articles on corporate law, corporate personhood, and securities regulation. She is a graduate of Stanford University and the Law School of the University of California, Los Angeles

'Corporate personhood has troubled us for millennia, and no book is likely to be the last word. But for readers interested in these issues, vital to the future of American democracy, this lucid, well-informed, fair-minded, and wide-ranging study will serve as an invaluable point of departure for all future debate.' Meir Dan-Cohen, University of California, Berkeley and author of Rights, Persons, and Organizations: A Legal Theory for Bureaucratic Society 'Since Citizens United, Americans have been outraged by the notion that, as Mitt Romney infamously said, 'Corporations are people, my friend'. Breaking through the political slogans, Susanna Kim Ripken uses insights from law, economics, philosophy, and anthropology to show how complex and multifaceted corporate personhood is. This book is essential reading for anyone who wants to understand corporations and corporate power in society.' Adam Winkler, University of California, Los Angeles School of Law and author of We the Corporations: How American Businesses Won their Civil Rights 'Corporate Personhood constitutes an indispensable contribution to the debate over the proper role, duties, and rights of the corporation. Eschewing more comfortable, less nuanced paths, Professor Ripken's masterpiece forges ahead with a thoughtful, balanced, and insightful portrait of the corporation, informed by a review of the best relevant interdisciplinary scholarship available.' Ronald J. Colombo, Maurice A. Deane School of Law, Hofstra University, New York and author of The First Amendment and the Business Corporation 'This pathbreaking book insists - and persuades - that a multi-dimensional approach to the fractured corporate personhood debate best promotes correct understanding and fruitful progress. Distilling literature from many disciplines, Professor Ripken enriches our scholarly understanding and charts a pragmatic way forward on tough issues. A unique, impressive must-read book.' Lyman P. Q. Johnson, Robert O. Bentley Professor of Law, Washington and Lee University 'Well referenced with court cases, law reviews, and journal articles.' G. E. Kaupins, Choice