Julian Velasco's "A Catholic Defense of Corporate Law and Practice"

10/24/2023

Julian Velasco's "A Catholic Defense of Corporate Law and Practice"

As regular readers know, exploring the implications of Catholic social teaching for corporate law and governance is one of my principals areas of interest. I just read a wonderful contribution to that literature by Notre Dame Law Professor Julian Velsco. Here's the abstract:

In this essay, I provide a defense of corporate law and of pursuing a career therein from the perspective of Catholic teaching. I argue that Catholicism is not incompatible with the pursuit of wealth as such, but rather insists upon the appropriate use of wealth. I also argue that it is appropriate for corporate actors to pursue the interests of shareholders, provided that they do not break the law or otherwise sin in doing so. I also explain why I found transaction practice personally fulfilling.

Velasco, Julian, A Catholic Defense of Corporate Law and Practice (August 25, 2023). 38 Notre Dame J.L. Ethics & Pub. Pol’y ___ (Forthcoming), Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=4552281

I was very flattered by footnote 114:

As for the actual benefits that flow from the use of the corporate form, I point the reader to the works of Michael Novak and Stephen Bainbridge in particular. See, e.g., MICHAEL NOVAK, TOWARD A THEOLOGY OF THE CORPORATION (AEI Press, rev. ed. 1990); Stephen M. Bainbridge, Community and Statism: A Conservative Contractarian Critique of Progressive Corporate Law Scholarship, 82 CORNELL L. REV. 856, 898-99 (1997); Stephen M. Bainbridge, In Defense of the Shareholder Wealth Maximization Norm: A Reply to Professor Green, 50 WASH. & LEE L. REV. 1423, 1446 (1994) (“That rule [i.e., the shareholder wealth maximization norm] has helped produce an economy that is dominated by public corporations, which in turn has produced the highest standard of living of any society in the history of the world.”). They have argued that the corporate form is not only morally acceptable, but positively beneficial. According to them, it has led to unprecedented levels of prosperity and the alleviation of incredible amounts of suffering. Their arguments, which I find generally persuasive, should help to destigmatize corporations and corporate law.

But I would strongly recommend readuing the paper even if he had left out that part.

Posted at 03:10 PM in Catholic Social Thought & the Law , Corporate Social Responsibility | Permalink

Comments

In this essay, I provide a defense of corporate law and of pursuing a career therein from the perspective of Catholic teaching. I argue that Catholicism is not incompatible with the pursuit of wealth as such, but rather insists upon the appropriate use of wealth. I also argue that it is appropriate for corporate actors to pursue the interests of shareholders, provided that they do not break the law or otherwise sin in doing so. I also explain why I found transaction practice personally fulfilling.

Velasco, Julian, A Catholic Defense of Corporate Law and Practice (August 25, 2023). 38 Notre Dame J.L. Ethics & Pub. Pol’y ___ (Forthcoming), Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=4552281

I was very flattered by footnote 114:

As for the actual benefits that flow from the use of the corporate form, I point the reader to the works of Michael Novak and Stephen Bainbridge in particular. See, e.g., MICHAEL NOVAK, TOWARD A THEOLOGY OF THE CORPORATION (AEI Press, rev. ed. 1990); Stephen M. Bainbridge, Community and Statism: A Conservative Contractarian Critique of Progressive Corporate Law Scholarship, 82 CORNELL L. REV. 856, 898-99 (1997); Stephen M. Bainbridge, In Defense of the Shareholder Wealth Maximization Norm: A Reply to Professor Green, 50 WASH. & LEE L. REV. 1423, 1446 (1994) (“That rule [i.e., the shareholder wealth maximization norm] has helped produce an economy that is dominated by public corporations, which in turn has produced the highest standard of living of any society in the history of the world.”). They have argued that the corporate form is not only morally acceptable, but positively beneficial. According to them, it has led to unprecedented levels of prosperity and the alleviation of incredible amounts of suffering. Their arguments, which I find generally persuasive, should help to destigmatize corporations and corporate law.

But I would strongly recommend readuing the paper even if he had left out that part.