Corporate Crime in the Global Era: The Enimont Case

Abstract

This paper uses a case study methodology and a Critical Theory framework to interpret corporate crimes committed by the transnational corporation Ferruzzi. Building upon the literature on the crisis of Fordism, the globalization of the economy and society, and corporate crime, it is argued that Ferruzzi was involved in a systematic violation of laws. The analysis points to the fact that these behaviors are endemic to capitalism as they are rooted in the contradiction between capital accumulation and substantive democracy in advanced Western societies. Democratic calls for the establishment of broader participation of subordinate classes in the direction of society create obstacles to the action of profit-seeking corporations. Corporations bypass these obstacles through illegal maneuvers which, today, are made possible by the transnational nature of their activities.