The Role of Civil Society in Promoting Corporate Accountability for International Crimes

Abstract

This article examines the role that civil society has played in pursuing corporate accountability for international crimes. The article is divided into five main parts. Following a general introduction in Section 1, Section 2 sets forth the definitions used throughout this article and the methodology used to carry out the research. Section 3 covers cases at international tribunals, beginning with an overview of prosecutions of corporate executives at the International Military Tribunal at Nuremberg and proceeding to an examination of civil society engagement with the International Criminal Court in cases involving corporate actors. Section 4 analyses cases brought by civil society actors in domestic courts, focusing on criminal cases filed in France and civil cases filed in the USA. This section of the article reviews cases from the USA that have narrowed corporate liability for international crimes and compares them with similarly situated cases filed in France, which has become a forum of choice for victims seeking corporate criminal accountability. In Section 5, we conclude that civil society’s pursuit of corporate accountability in domestic courts has ensured that a greater number and a wider range of actors are held to account, thereby complementing the work of international tribunals, which comparatively can try only a small number of cases, and has offered a ray of hope to victims who wish to see accountability for international crimes.