The seventh annual Executive Branch Review Conference took place on May 8, 2019, at the Mayflower Hotel in Washington DC. The second panel explored "Corporate Responsibility: Maximizing Shareholder Benefit v. Social Justice."
This Panel will focus on the differing theories on the proper duty of corporations. Do corporations only owe their loyalty to their specific shareholders, and should they be bound to conduct that is judged purely on how much it increases the value of shareholder investments? Or, perhaps due to the sheer size and power of corporations, do they also owe a duty to society as whole. Some argue that Corporations are made up of people with individual ideologies and beliefs, and thus corporations making decisions on political motivations is unavoidable. Others argue that since corporations last much longer than individual lives or careers, that they owe a duty to the long term prospects of the company, over the present day shareholders. The debate rages on and the eventual outcome will have wide-ranging implications for American business, and the national economy as a whole.
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As always, the Federalist Society takes no position on particular legal or public policy issues; all expressions of opinion are those of the speakers.
Featuring:

Hon. Paul Atkins, Chief Executive Office, Patomak Global Partners
Prof. Jonathan R. Macey, Sam Harris Professor of Law, Yale Law School
Prof. Andrew Schwartz, Associate Professor of Law, University of Colorado Law School
Moderator: Mr. Matthew R. A. Heiman, Senior Fellow and Associate Director for Global Security, National Security Institute