Limits of Statutory Responses to Corporate Restructuring Illustrated with Reference to Plant Closing Legislation

Abstract

The accumulated evidence on geographical restructuring in the United States suggests that the current regulatory framework is quite inadequate. There is little in the way of consistent statutory guides for accommodating or rationalizing competing public policy interests. By their actions, corporations are challenging the integrity of existing laws and regulations. In some cases, it is clear that corporations are willing to risk significant legal penalties to achieve their goals. Is a new statute the answer? Is an industrial policy the best way of rationalizing corporations' economic imperatives with their social obligations? It is argued here that advocates of a statutory response are overly idealistic about the potential of law to deliver a determinate solution to the regulatory dilemmas posed by restructuring. In this respect, the argument is pessimistic, but not conservative, recognizing that many believe that statutes are the only way of achieving social goals. Nevertheless, it is clear that legislati...