A presentation by Cornelia Woll, President of the Hertie School and Professor of International Political Economy. This event is part of the Fundamental Rights Research Colloquium under the cluster “Fundamental Rights in the Global Political Economy" hosted by the Centre for Fundamental Rights.
Over the past decade, many of the world’s biggest companies have found themselves embroiled in legal disputes over corruption charges, fraud, environmental damage, tax evasion, or sanction violations. Corporations including Volkswagen and Credit Suisse have paid record-breaking fines. Many critics of globalization and corporate impunity cheer this turn toward accountability. Others, however, question American dominance in legal battles that seem to impose domestic legal norms beyond national boundaries. This talk examines the politics of American corporate criminal law and its extraterritorial reach. As governments abroad seek to respond to US law enforcement actions against their companies, they turn to flexible legal instruments that allow prosecutors to settle a case rather than bring it to court. As a result, we see the rise of negotiated corporate justice as a tool for disciplining companies across countries.
Cornelia Woll is President of the Hertie School and Professor of International Political Economy. Woll came to the Hertie School in 2022 from Sciences Po in Paris, where she had served in many roles since 2006, including President of the Academic Board, Professor of Political Science, Co-Director of the Max Planck Sciences Po Center. Woll holds a habilitation in political science from the University of Bremen (2013), a bi-national PhD from Sciences Po and the University of Cologne (2005), and an MA and a BA in international relations and political science from the University of Chicago. Her research focuses on the international political economy and economic sociology, in particular regulatory issues in the European Union and the United States. A specialist on business-government relations, she is the author of Corporate Crime and Punishment: Negotiated Justice in Global Markets (Princeton, in press), The Power of Inaction: Bank Bailouts in Comparative Perspective (Cornell, 2014).
Prior registration is required. Registered attendees will receive the dial-in details as well as a draft paper, on which the presentation is based, via e-mail prior to the event.
