Law Commons^™

The Constitution, The Roberts Court, And Business: The Significant Business Impact Of The 2011-2012 Supreme Court Term, Corey Ciocchetti

William & Mary Business Law Review

The 2011–2012 Supreme Court Term created quite the media buzz. The Affordable Care Act cases and the controversial Arizona immigration law dominated the headlines. But the Term also included other fascinating yet less sensationalized cases. The Court heard its fair share of criminal law controversies involving derelict defense attorneys and prosecutors, as well as civil procedure disputes involving qualified immunity for witnesses in grand jury proceedings and private parties assisting the government in litigation. The Justices also entertained arguments on a federal law allowing United States citizens born in Jerusalem to have “Israel” stamped as their birthplace on a passport. …

Clashing Policies Or Confusing Precedents: The "Gross Negligence" Exception To Consequential Damages Disclaimers, Michael Pillow

William & Mary Business Law Review

Consequential damages can easily amount to millions of dollars. Commercial parties often disclaim consequential damages in their contracts. This Article posits that such disclaimers between commercial parties under the Uniform Commercial Code (UCC) should not be found unenforceable based on gross negligence. Article 2 of the UCC promotes the policy of freedom of contract. Consistent with that policy, section 2-719 of the UCC provides that contractual consequential damages disclaimers should be enforceable absent a finding of unconscionability. This Article analyzes the interplay among UCC section 2-719, “public policy” exceptions to enforcing limitations of liability, and the law of gross negligence. …

To Believe In Black Stars Or Red Dragons?: Comparing The Foreign Direct Investment Climates Of Ghana And China, Theodore W. Briscoe Iii

William & Mary Business Law Review

When thinking of overseas business expansion, most think of China. This is for good reason: China commands a lion’s share of foreign direct investment money. It would shock readers to know that there are destinations that are far more suitable for overseas investment than China. It would shock readers even more to know that one of these destinations is in sub-Saharan Africa.

Ghana—the Black Star country—has quietly put together a legal regime that is extremely attractive for foreign direct investment. When comparing Ghana’s foreign investment policies to China’s, Ghana’s policies are indisputably more favorable to foreign investors. Ghana offers more …

When Opting Out Is The Only Option: Protecting Small Business Debtors In Bankruptcy, Ryan Malone

William & Mary Business Law Review

This Note implores states that have not already done so to opt out of the provisions of the Federal Bankruptcy Code that place explicit limits on the amount a debtor is allowed to exempt from liquidation. By doing so, states will be able to provide debtors who operate their own small business a greater degree of protection from creditors, as those states are entitled to establish their own limit on the value of the tools of a debtor’s trade the debtor may shield in bankruptcy. This Note contends that Congress has evinced an intent within the last decade to restrict …

Scaling Chinese Walls: Insights From Aftra V. Jpmorgan Chase, Jeffrey Bingham

William & Mary Business Law Review

The material non-public information financial services firms receive from clients utilizing commercial banking services may often prove beneficial to the firm’s trust account clients if the information is used in making investment decisions for these trust accounts. Consequently, financial services firms confront two equally dubious options: to utilize the information to benefit the trust account client and break insider trading laws, or to disregard the information and seemingly violate the firm’s fiduciary duty to the trust account client. To successfully defend against either of the above claims, firms should establish and maintain effective Chinese Walls between private and public side …

The Business Judgment Rule As An Immunity Doctrine, Lori Mcmillan

William & Mary Business Law Review

The business judgment rule is a judicially created doctrine that protects directors from personal civil liability for the decisions they make on behalf of a corporation. In today’s era of corporate scandals, global financial meltdowns, and directorial malfeasance, it has become especially important in setting the bar for when directors are appropriately responsible to shareholders for their actions. Traditionally the business judgment rule has been regarded as a standard of liability, although it has never really been explored or enunciated as such. This view determines eligibility for business judgment rule protection of a directorial decision after an examination of certain …

Explaining "Bait-And-Switch" Regulation, David Adam Friedman

William & Mary Business Law Review

“Bait and switch” can describe a range of commercial behaviors common in the everyday marketplace, but virtually ignored in the academic literature. The traditional definition of unlawful bait and switch applies to insincere offers to sell one item in order to induce the buyer to purchase another. Certain sellers have historically employed bait-and-switch tactics, including urban retailers, aluminum siding companies, and supermarkets.

Colloquially, this definition can also cover lawful or other borderline sales tactics, including the use of teaser rates or low introductory pricing, or even “free offers.” Even common lawful tactics, like the deliberate routing of customers past other …

The Social Enterprise Revolution In Corporate Law: A Primer On Emerging Corporate Entities In Europe And The United States And The Case For The Benefit Corporation, Robert T. Esposito

William & Mary Business Law Review

Remarkably, in the face of a global recession, the social enterprise sector continued to experience extraordinary growth in both financial support and the number of newly authorized corporate entities aimed at social entrepreneurs who seek to use the power of business to simultaneously achieve profit and social or environmental benefits. This Article highlights recent developments in the social enterprise movement in Europe and the United States and focuses on the emergence of a surprisingly broad range of newly authorized corporate entities on both continents in response to the needs of social entrepreneurs. These include social cooperatives and the community interest …

Cyberfinancing For Economic Justice, Lisa T. Alexander

William & Mary Business Law Review

This Article argues for the socially optimal regulation of online peer-to- peer (P2P) lending and crowdfunding to advance economic justice in the United States. Peer-to-peer lending websites, such as Prosper.com or Kiva.org, facilitate lending transactions between individuals online without the involvement of a traditional bank or microfinance institution. Crowdfunding websites, such as Kickstarter.com, enable individuals to obtain financing from large numbers of contributors at once through an open online request for funds. These web-based transactions, and the intermediary organizations that facilitate them, constitute emerging cyberfinancing markets. These markets connect many individuals at once, across class, race, ethnicity, nationality, space, and …

Property Title Trouble In Non-Judicial Foreclosure States: The Ibanez Time Bomb?, Elizabeth Renuart

William & Mary Business Law Review

The economic crisis gripping the United States began when large numbers of homeowners defaulted on poorly underwritten subprime mortgage loans. Demand from Wall Street seduced mortgage lenders, brokers, and other players to churn out mortgage loans in extraordinary numbers. Securitization, the process of utilizing mortgage loans to back investment instruments, fanned the fire. The resulting volume also caused the parties to these deals to often handle and transfer the legally important documents that secure the resulting investments—the loan notes and mortgages—in a careless and sometimes fraudulent manner.

The consequences of this behavior are now becoming evident. All over the country, …

Executive Compensation And Income Inequality, Daniel J. Morrissey

William & Mary Business Law Review

This Article explores the connection between exorbitant executive compensation and the growing income inequality in our country. It discusses the traditional legal attempts to rein in corporate remuneration as well as the more recent “Say-on-Pay” right given to shareholders in the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform Act of 2010. The Article concludes that negative stockholder votes can be evidence that directors have breached their fiduciary duties by granting overly generous pay hikes to their top officials.

Taming The Fcpa Overreach Through An Adequate Procedures Defense, Dieter Juedes

William & Mary Business Law Review

Currently many American corporations must pursue and develop international business relationships. For these American firms, the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) is the most important U.S. law governing international commerce. The FCPA prohibits firms from bribing foreign officials for the purpose of obtaining or retaining business in a foreign country. Despite its infrequent use during the last quarter of the twentieth century, Department of Justice (DOJ) and Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) enforcement actions under the statute have exploded in the last few years. Due to this increase in enforcement and the difficulties in complying with the FCPA, the anti-bribery …

Company Law In The European Union And The United States: A Comparative Analysis Of The Impact Of The Eu Freedoms Of Establishment And Capital And The U.S. Interstate Commerce Clause, Christoph Allmendinger

William & Mary Business Law Review

Since the decision of the European Court of Justice in the Centros case, it has become popular in company law to draw comparisons between the United States economic constitution and the Single European Market. Since then, fears of a European “Delaware Effect,” which would create a “race to the bottom,” have hounded the debate on European company law. In this discussion, however, the unique constitutional framework of both the EU and the U.S. is seldom regarded. This constitutional framework, nevertheless, determines the behavior of both the legislators at state level and the market participants. This Article compares the impact of …

The Rise Of Urban Agriculture: A Cautionary Tale – No Rules, Big Problems, Matthew V. Bradshaw

William & Mary Business Law Review

This Note identifies the underlying cause of the collapse of the family farm, namely the failed effort of the U.S. Government to save it through the institution and ongoing promulgation of the Farm Bill. Through subsidy and direct payment regimes, federal legislation has enabled large commodity producers to enjoy protection from market risk while squeezing out smaller growers. Because of growing consumer distrust in large-scale agricultural production, the urban agriculture movement and nontraditional market systems continue to grow in popularity and footprint across the United States. Many municipalities have already recognized the vast benefits that an urban agriculture regime can …

Benefit Expenses: How The Benefit Corporation's Social Purpose Changes The Ordinary And Necessary, Emily Cohen

William & Mary Business Law Review

The recent spread of Benefit Corporations formally challenges the assumption that for-profit companies are strictly profit maximizing entities. Businesses can now incorporate under charitable business purposes that were once restricted to 501(c)(3) non-profit organizations. While incorporating under a charitable purpose is no longer restricted to only non-profit entities, Benefit Corporations are not able to receive the same income tax exemption under the Internal Revenue Code. While for-profit entities do receive some tax benefits for their charitable behavior, such as the charitable donation deduction, the current tax structure does not provide an equal amount of tax benefits for charitable behavior when …

Secure My Data Or Pay The Price: Consumer Remedy For The Negligent Enablement Of Data Breach, John A. Fisher

William & Mary Business Law Review

Every time we swipe our debit cards, pay our bills online, or sign up for a service like Netflix, we are entrusting important identifying information to the companies with which we do business. Most of the time, those companies take seriously the obligation to protect our data and prevent it from falling into the hands of those who would use it to benefit themselves at our expense. Some companies, however, fail to do enough to meet that burden, making it easier for identity thieves to inflict personal and financial injury on consumers. To date, our legal system has essentially denied …

Systemic Risk And Dodd-Frank's Volcker Rule, Julie A.D. Manasfi

William & Mary Business Law Review

With the recent global financial crisis starting in 2007, the issue of “systemic risk” has attracted much attention in our financial system. Some legislators have asserted that proprietary trading by banking entities, generally the trading of financial instruments for a banking entity’s own account, played a critical role in the recent global financial crisis. These sentiments parallel arguments that the practices of banks and their securities affiliates in the 1920s were partly responsible for the stock market crash of 1929 and subsequent Great Depression. At the heart of these assertions is the issue of whether combining the businesses of commercial …