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LUND UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES

Doing Business with an Actor Guilty of International Crimes - A study on responsibility of corporate complicity in war crimes

Otto, Josefin LU (2022) LAGF03 20222
Department of Law
Faculty of Law
Abstract (Swedish)
I en alltmer globaliserad värld har transnationella företag omfattande makt och inflytande. Många företag kan vara delaktiga i oetiska affärer genom affärs-förbindelser med stater och aktörer som begår internationella brott. Debatten om företagsansvar har nyligen fått ökad uppmärksamhet genom det pågående fallet om Lundin Oils.
Denna kandidatuppsats har som syfte att utreda möjligheterna att hålla företag ansvariga för medverkan till krigsbrott i internationell samt svensk straffrätt. För detta ändamål har reglerna för medverkan till internationella brott valts ut, eftersom detta har ansetts vara den bäst lämpade ansvarsformen för företagsledare. Genom en rättsdogmatisk metod och ett internationellt perspektiv kommer gällande rätt inom... (More)
I en alltmer globaliserad värld har transnationella företag omfattande makt och inflytande. Många företag kan vara delaktiga i oetiska affärer genom affärs-förbindelser med stater och aktörer som begår internationella brott. Debatten om företagsansvar har nyligen fått ökad uppmärksamhet genom det pågående fallet om Lundin Oils.
Denna kandidatuppsats har som syfte att utreda möjligheterna att hålla företag ansvariga för medverkan till krigsbrott i internationell samt svensk straffrätt. För detta ändamål har reglerna för medverkan till internationella brott valts ut, eftersom detta har ansetts vara den bäst lämpade ansvarsformen för företagsledare. Genom en rättsdogmatisk metod och ett internationellt perspektiv kommer gällande rätt inom internationell och svensk rätt att undersökas. Primära rättskällor som lagar och internationella överenskommelser, förarbeten samt tidigare domstolsavgöranden kommer användas tillsammans med juridisk doktrin på området internationell straffrätt, medhjälp samt ansvar för företag. Därefter kommer möjligheterna som finns idag att hålla företag ansvariga och eventuella problem som uppstår att kritiskt granskas.

Uppsatsens utredning finner att nuvarande regelverk teoretiskt sett möjliggör att hålla företagsledare ansvariga för medverkan till krigsbrott, genom att man använder principer utarbetade inom individuellt ansvar. Det finns dock få regelverk och för få rättsfall för att fastställa om nuvarande regler är tillräckliga för ansvar för företag. Inom internationell rätt kan man se en fragmentering där olika krav och rekvisit har tolkats olika beroende på vilken internationell domstol det gäller. I svensk rätt har företags eventuella ansvar för krigsbrott knappt diskuterats, samt att internationell rätt verkar få en mindre framträdande roll eftersom det främst är de nationella regelverken som ska användas för de internationella brotten. Allt detta bidrar till slutsatsen att rådande regleringar gör det idag svårt att hålla företag ansvariga för medhjälp till krigsbrott. (Less)
Abstract
In an increasingly globalized world, transnational companies have extensive power and influence. However, many of these companies can also be involved in bad business activity due to them being in a business relation with for instance a state committing international crimes. The debate about corporate responsibility has recently received new attention because of the prosecution against the corporate representatives of Lundin Oils.
The purpose of this bachelor thesis is to examine the possibilities of corporate responsibility for complicity in war crimes in international criminal law and Swedish criminal law. The chosen mode of responsibility to examine is aiding and abetting as this has been concluded to be one of the most appropriate... (More)
In an increasingly globalized world, transnational companies have extensive power and influence. However, many of these companies can also be involved in bad business activity due to them being in a business relation with for instance a state committing international crimes. The debate about corporate responsibility has recently received new attention because of the prosecution against the corporate representatives of Lundin Oils.
The purpose of this bachelor thesis is to examine the possibilities of corporate responsibility for complicity in war crimes in international criminal law and Swedish criminal law. The chosen mode of responsibility to examine is aiding and abetting as this has been concluded to be one of the most appropriate forms of liability for corporate actors. For this purpose, the essay adapts a dogmatic legal method and an international perspective in order to study international and Swedish law. Primary sources consisting of official acts, legislative history and case law will be studied together with legal doctrine on the topics of international criminal law, complicity, and corporate responsibility. The aim is to critically review the possibilities of holding corporate actors criminally liable and the issues arising with this.

The findings of the essay are that theoretically current requirements do make it possible to hold corporate representatives responsible for complicity in war crimes. The same rules of individual responsibility are being used. There is however little case law to fully comprehend if the current regulations are sufficient for corporate accountability. In international law a fragmentation has developed with different requirements on complicity depending on the international court. In Swedish law, corporate responsibility for international crimes is barely addressed and ICL seems to have a minor role today, since national regulations are intended to be used for complicity in war crimes. All this con-tributes to the conclusion that current regulations make it difficult to hold corporations responsible for complicity in war crimes. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
Otto, Josefin LU
supervisor
organization
course
LAGF03 20222
year
type
M2 - Bachelor Degree
subject
keywords
Public international law, International criminal law, Corporate complicity, International crimes
language
English
id
9105059
date added to LUP
2023-02-03 16:33:37
date last changed
2023-02-03 16:33:37
@misc{9105059,
  abstract     = {{In an increasingly globalized world, transnational companies have extensive power and influence. However, many of these companies can also be involved in bad business activity due to them being in a business relation with for instance a state committing international crimes. The debate about corporate responsibility has recently received new attention because of the prosecution against the corporate representatives of Lundin Oils. 
The purpose of this bachelor thesis is to examine the possibilities of corporate responsibility for complicity in war crimes in international criminal law and Swedish criminal law. The chosen mode of responsibility to examine is aiding and abetting as this has been concluded to be one of the most appropriate forms of liability for corporate actors. For this purpose, the essay adapts a dogmatic legal method and an international perspective in order to study international and Swedish law. Primary sources consisting of official acts, legislative history and case law will be studied together with legal doctrine on the topics of international criminal law, complicity, and corporate responsibility. The aim is to critically review the possibilities of holding corporate actors criminally liable and the issues arising with this. 

The findings of the essay are that theoretically current requirements do make it possible to hold corporate representatives responsible for complicity in war crimes. The same rules of individual responsibility are being used. There is however little case law to fully comprehend if the current regulations are sufficient for corporate accountability. In international law a fragmentation has developed with different requirements on complicity depending on the international court. In Swedish law, corporate responsibility for international crimes is barely addressed and ICL seems to have a minor role today, since national regulations are intended to be used for complicity in war crimes. All this con-tributes to the conclusion that current regulations make it difficult to hold corporations responsible for complicity in war crimes.}},
  author       = {{Otto, Josefin}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{Doing Business with an Actor Guilty of International Crimes - A study on responsibility of corporate complicity in war crimes}},
  year         = {{2022}},
}