Transnational corporations and international law: Liability or impunity?

摘要

Transnational corporations, as major actors in international society, exert influence over people's daily lives. The assertion that human rights obligations do not apply to them cannot be accepted. Firstly, the state-centric vision of international law, due in part to its public/private division, has prevented its application to TNCs. The result is that, today, TNCs are practically absent from the de jure international life, while de facto they are extremely active and powerful. Nevertheless, TNCs may be considered subject to many fields of international law.; Secondly, although there is no current international tribunal that has jurisdiction over TNCs, there are mechanisms available to hold them and their officers liable for violations of human rights and international law. International criminal law recognizes the concept of corporate responsibility and, while waiting for the International Criminal Court to have jurisdiction over corporations, their officers and representatives may be held personally liable for the criminal acts of their corporations. Corporate wrongdoing may also be regulated through the principles of state responsibility.; Finally, the development of voluntary codes of conduct is of interest to those who want to assert the accountability of TNCs. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)