Document Type
Article
Publication Date
Fall 2024
Publication Citation
100 Indiana Law Journal 249 (2024)
Abstract
Classic theories of civil disobedience endorse the right of individuals to commit illegal acts to protest unjust laws and policies. Acts of civil disobedience have historically played a central role in exposing injustice and producing vital legal and social change. The literature on civil disobedience is vast; political and legal theorists have long recognized the contributions of individual legal resisters in the ongoing pursuit of a just society. Little attention has been given, however, to intentional lawbreaking by organizational entities that seek to protest unjust, illegitimate, or discriminatory laws. This Article addresses that gap by exploring the prospect of corporate civil disobedience and revealing its potential to transform law in furtherance of democratic ideals.
If the purpose of civil disobedience is to draw attention to perceived injustices, provoke public dialogue over controversial issues, and catalyze legal reform, that purpose can arguably be fulfilled by a corporate person equally as well as an individual one. This Article explains how corporate entities can commit conscientious breaches of law to counter problematic rules and policies. Defiance of the law comes with costs and risks, but legal resistance by entities can provide value in a society that understands the importance of dissenting voices in enhancing democratic debate. Highlighting several theoretical, normative, and doctrinal questions surrounding corporate civil disobedience, this Article sketches a framework for viewing corporate civil disobedience as a potentially useful tool in a well-functioning democratic system.
Recommended Citation
Ripken, Susanna K.
(2024)
"Corporate Civil Disobedience,"
Indiana Law Journal: Vol. 100:
Iss.
1, Article 5.
Available at:
https://www.repository.law.indiana.edu/ilj/vol100/iss1/5