ESRI Discussion Paper Series No.192
Does the Difference Between "Corporate interest" and "Personal interest" in Corporate Crime Influence Sentencing?
-- Econometric Analysis of Sentencing Factors in the Corporate Tax Evasion
- Ken Shiraishi
- (Economic and Social Research Institute, Cabinet Office)
- Sayuri Shiraishi
- (Yokohama City University)
- Atsushi Yamashita
- (Economic and Social Research Institute, Cabinet Office)
- Takaaki Murakami
- (Economic and Social Research Institute, Cabinet Office)
The full text is written in Japanese.
Abstract
Based on the fact that corporate crime has two types of motives - "corporate interest" and "personal interest" - court decisions often suggest that the type of motive a defendant had may affect sentencing. This paper verifies such an effect on corporate tax evasion cases by utilizing econometric analysis. We found that "corporate interest" has a negative effect on sentencing. We think that the result is reasonable from a social standpoint but is not justifiable from a standpoint of crime deterrent. Therefore, we argue that we should rethink criminal liability and crime deterrents in sentencing theory in cases of corporate crime.
Moreover, when the jury system is introduced in 2009, we expect econometric analysis to play a significant role in sentencing, which will contribute enhanced transparency in criminal justice procedures and in sentencing.