The Punishment of Corporate Crime in China

Abstract

Corporate crime is usually studied as the economic product of a free market society. Certainly, corporate conglomerates when operated legally have helped a country’s economy, and to a larger extent, have promoted a healthy global economy. Illegal operations, on the other hand, may not only harm the well- being of the country in which they occur but can and have harmed the well-being of not just one country but also globally. Therefore, more and more nations and global communities (e.g., The United Nations) now consider corporate crime more of a priority because of its tremendous global effects. The United States in particular is actively seeking new ways to prevent corporate crimes and is prosecuting white-collar criminals aggressively to offset the damage to its economic reputation done by the recent waves of corporate crimes. This international trend has acted as strong encouragement for study and research regarding white-collar crimes in China, especially concerning how to deal with its corporate crimes and how to effectively punish white-collar criminals. This analysis will discuss China’s corporate crimes as well as issues regarding their punishment under Chinese law.