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George Washington University Law School

2005

Corporate law

Articles 1 - 2 of 2

Full-Text Articles in Law

Sarbanes-Oxley, Corporate Federalism, And The Declining Significance Of Federal Reforms On State Director Independence Standards, Lisa M. Fairfax Jan 2005

Sarbanes-Oxley, Corporate Federalism, And The Declining Significance Of Federal Reforms On State Director Independence Standards, Lisa M. Fairfax

GW Law Faculty Publications & Other Works

Commentators have argued that the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 ("Sarbanes-Oxley" or the "Act") raises federalism concerns because it regulates the internal affairs of a corporation, including the composition of, and qualifications for, corporate boards, in a manner traditionally reserved to states. This Article responds to those claims, arguing that the Act reflects a relatively minimal intrusion into state law, particularly with regard to issues of director independence. This Article further argues that the Act's failure to disturb state law on these issues may impede its ability to tighten director independence standards and by extension may undermine its ability to improve …


How Do We Know When An Enterprise Exists? Unanswerable Questions And Legal Polycentricity In China, Donald C. Clarke Jan 2005

How Do We Know When An Enterprise Exists? Unanswerable Questions And Legal Polycentricity In China, Donald C. Clarke

GW Law Faculty Publications & Other Works

One of the most perplexing aspects of Chinese enterprise law concerns the conditions under which state institutions will acknowledge and give effect to the existence of a business organization distinct from the natural or legal persons that participate in its operations. The answer might appear to be simple - they will do so whenever legally stipulated conditions are met - but this answer would be wrong. State institutions often give real and meaningful effect to the existence of entities with no apparent statutory basis, or whose legal basis dictates consequences that seem at odds with the consequences called for by …