Partisanship and Corporate Law
America is beset with partisan politics. The brinkmanship, dysfunction, and policies that emanate from political partisanship touch so much of American life, law, and society. Increasingly and prominently, businesses have been drawn into partisan debates on issues like gender equality, gun violence, reproductive rights, racial justice, and climate change. Many executives, investors, employees, activists, and other stakeholders now expect American businesses to play an active role in addressing many of society’s toughest challenges in the face of political institutions that too often seem too partisan to meaningfully confront those challenges. In response to a new wave of corporate social activism, national and local political leaders have both admonished and applauded businesses for their attempts to address social issues.
This new wave of corporate social activism has prompted many important questions and reexaminations of core issues at the critical intersection of business, law, and politics. One such foundational question is political partisanship’s impact on corporate law.
In a forthcoming article, Is Corporate Law Nonpartisan?, Professors Ofer Eldar and Gabriel Rauterberg offer an in-depth, fair minded examination of partisanship’s effects on corporate law and corporate lawmaking. Through a thoughtful study, that carefully weaves quantitative and qualitive analyses, the article offers a persuasive explanation of how partisanship may have contributed to key differences in state corporate laws and how safeguards against partisanship have contributed to Delaware’s sustained dominance in the competition for corporate charters. Continue reading "Partisanship and Corporate Law"
