1. Critically assess the statement that MNEs do not have international legal personality. Introduce a clear thesis , strengths and weaknesses and conclusion.
Each paragraph must address Specific issues/debates and conclusion with your opinion.
Please use a useful range of relevant illustrations.
MAIN REFERENCE
Peter T Muchlinski, Multinational Enterprises and the Law (Oxford University Press, 2nd Ed, 2007). The third edition of the book is expected in early 2021 and should be available
OTHER REFERENCES
Grietje Baars, The Corporation, Law and Capitalism: A Radical Perspective on the Role of Law in the Global Political Economy (Haymarket Books 3 March
2020).
Christian A. Witting, Liability of Corporate Groups and Networks (Cambridge University Press 2018).
Grietje Baars and Andre Spicer (eds), The Corporation: A Critical Multi-Disciplinary Handbook (Cambridge University Press 2017).
Joel Bakan, The Corporation: The Pathological Pursuit of Profit and Power (Free Press 2019).
TNI, State of Power 2020: The Corporation (Transnational Institute 2020).
Daoning Zhang, Insolvency Law and Multinational Groups: Theories, Solutions and Recommendations for Business Failure (Routledge 2020).
Karsen Nowrot, ‘Reconceptualising International Legal Personality of Influential Non-State Actors: towards a Rebuttable Presumption of Normative Responsibilities’ < http://www.esil-sedi.eu/sites/default/files/Nowrot.PDF>
JOURNALS
Articles in the following journals:
Transnational Corporations
Third World Quarterly
The European Journal of International Law
Journal of Law and Society
Journal of Law and Conflict Resolution
International Journal of Law in Context
The OECD:
Principles of Corporate Governance (revised 2015) http://www.oecd.org/corporate/principles-corporate-governance.htm
Intergovernmental organisations:
UN Global Compact with Business http://www.unglobalcompact.org
European Union: http://europa.eu/index_en.htm
ILO http://www.ilo.org
World Bank http://www.worldbank.org
MIGA http://www.miga.org
IFC http://www.ifc.org
Non-governmental organisations:
Oxfam: http://www.oxfam.org
World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF): http://www.wwf.org.uk/
Global Justice: https://www.globaljustice.org.uk/
Business and Human Rights Resource Centre https://www.business-humanrights.org/en
Institute for Human Rights and Business http://www.ihrb.org/
Tax Justice Network: https://www.taxjustice.net/
World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF): http://www.wwf.org.uk/
Earth Rights International https://earthrights.org
Transnational Institute https://www.tni.org
ENGLISH CASE LAW
English Law:
Davies and Worthington, Principles of Modern Company Law Chs 8-9
Ekaterina Aristova, ‘Tort Litigation Against Transnational Corporations in the English Court: The Challenge of Jurisdiction’ 14 (2018) 2 Utrecht Law Review 6-21 https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3198191
Simon Baughen, ‘Multinationals and the Export of Hazard’ 58 (1995) MLR 54.
Multinational Gas Case [1983] 2 All ER 563; [1983] WLR 492
Comment: “W” 47 (1984) MLR p. 87
Adams v Cape Industries [1990] Ch.433; [1991] 1 All ER 929.
Yukong Line of Korea v Rendsburg Investment Corp of Liberia (No.2.) [1998] 4 All ER 82 (QBD)
Re Polly Peck International plc [1996] 2 All ER 433
Chandler v Cape plc [2012] 3 All ER 640 (CA) [2012] EWCA Civ 525.
Prest v Prest [2013] UKSC 34
VTB Capital v Nutritek International Corp [2013] UKSC 5 [2013] I All ER 1296 (SC)
Thompson v The Renwick Group Plc [2014] EWCA Civ 635 (13 May 2014) at http://www.bailii.org/ew/cases/EWCA/Civ/2014/635.html
Dominic Liswaniso Lungowe and others v Vedanta Resources Plc and Konkola Copper Mines Plc [2017] EWCA Civ 1528;
Bebe Okpabi and others v Royal Dutch Shell Plc
Moto v Trafigura, Bodo Community v. Royal Dutch Shell Plc. [2014] EWHC 958
AAA and Others v. (1) Unilever Plc. and (2) Unilever Tea Kenya Ltd. [2017] EWHC 371 (QB); [2018] EWCA Civ 1532
and Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Ltd [2018] EWCA Civ 191
UK Company Law Review and Group Liability:
Muchlinski, ‘Holding Multinationals to Account: Recent Developments in English Litigation and the Company Law Review’ 23 Company Lawyer 168 (2002).
ESSAY MUST ANSWER:
(a) provide a comprehensive, interdisciplinary study of the public interest dimension of MNEs and the regulation of their activities;
(b) To do so in relation to the social issues raised by their operations; and discuss 2 relevant MNE Case laws
(c) Knowledge of the effects of MNE operations on home and host economies and a capacity to explain the principal regulatory issues that emerge from such operations and how, in practice, these have been dealt with;
(d) To examine the impact of the legal and regulatory environment for MNEs by dealing with sub-national, national, regional and multilateral policies and rules.
QUESTIONS TO ADDRESS
1.what is a multinationals legal personality in international law?
Discuss Obligations under international law?
discuss state sovereignty.where do host states in the global south get redress for violations by multinationals? jurisdictions, influence of MNEs and accountability of their actions
- Multinationals and human rights abuses
- Multinationals and the environment in the global south(focus on Africa)
DISCUSS THE DIGITAL ECONOMY. What are taxation effects on host states? How can tax harmonisation be achieve between the north and south? Is there. Governance gap?
DISCUSS ENVIRONMENTAL RIGHTS