LW941-_-__ : Corporate Responsibility and Business Law

This module examines the concepts, theories and models of corporate responsibility and corporate social responsibility (CSR) and their implications and challenges for business law and practice. It examines the role of CSR in as a business strategy and public governance tool in the context of the social and environmental impacts of business activities that suggest interesting dimensions to the role of business in society. In this module you will examine the debates and doctrines of CSR in domestic and transnational environments and explore broad questions such as: What is CSR and what are the forms of corporate responsibility? What is the relationship between law and CSR, and can public and private laws facilitate CSR? Can CSR address regulatory and governance gaps in national and transnational jurisdictions?  What are the limits of international law in business regulation and can CSR fill gaps in international law? What is the status of a company? What is a stakeholder and what interest groups exist in a company? What is the role of social reporting? Can CSR be used as a development tool and for promoting socio-economic rights and sustainable development? The module reflects some degrees of comparative analysis and interdisciplinarity and case study exercises will also enable you to explore the approaches of different disciplines to CSR, including law, management, politics, philosophy, ethics and international relations. You will have an opportunity to discover the strengths and weaknesses of taking global, contextual and comparative approaches to CSR.

The module will combine elements of taught instruction and group discussion in weekly lectures and interactive tutorials requiring your active participation in the whole group under guidance of the tutor. As part of a formative assessment process, you may be asked to make presentations in seminars and to undertake exercises on Moodle. In addition, you will work independently on the summative assessment exercise. No pre-requisites or co-requisites are required.