Law Commons^™

Unpacking Limited Liability: Direct And Vicarious Liability Of Corporate Participants For Torts Of The Enterprise, Robert B. Thompson

Vanderbilt Law Review

The corporate form limits the liability of shareholders and other participants arising from the enterprise. This broad insulation shields corporate participants not only from vicarious liability for the acts of others, but even from liability for some of their own acts taken in the corporate name. The liability that is avoided does not disap- pear into a black hole; it falls onto another person. If the liability is shifted to a tort victim, the use of the corporate form seems particularly troublesome, permitting the enterprise to externalize part of the cost of doing business. This limitation seems inconsistent with the …