CORPORATE AND WHITE COLLAR CRIME - 2024/5

Module Overview

This module explores theoretical, practical and policy issues related to how the criminal law operates in corporate contexts, both crimes perpetrated by individuals (sometimes called "white collar crime") and crimes perpetrated by organisations (corporate crimes). The module places roughly equal emphasis on doctrinal and theoretical issues. We will explore doctrinal issues related to specific offences that are central to this area, such as fraud, regulatory crimes and corporate manslaughter, and we will look at practical issues of how corporations seek to promote employee compliance with such laws. At the same time, we will investigate important theoretical and policy questions related to crime in the corporate context. These include how corporate and regulatory criminal law push traditional boundaries of criminalisation and whether some regulatory offences are so strict as to amount to improperly punishing innocent conduct. We will also explore how it might make sense to punish corporations when they are non-living entities incapable of truly experiencing penalties, as well as doctrinal and policy questions about what the best mechanism for the imposition of corporate liability might be (comparing the identification doctrine to respondeat superior and "failure to prevent" offences). Throughout the module, our focus will be not only on learning about a sampling of representative parts of law, but also (and just as importantly) on casting a critical eye on how criminal law works in corporate settings. We will consider questions about what leads actors to engage in criminal misconduct in corporate contexts, with a particular emphasis on the organisational factors that can pressure or incentivise especially mid- or lower-level employees to break the law. We will explore ways in which large amounts of everyday conduct, the wrongness of which may not always be apparent to actors on the ground, gets deemed to be criminal in corporate settings, and we will debate whether and to what extent this makes sense. In these ways and more, we will seek to cast a critical eye on the criminal law in corporate settings and ask whether and when alternatives to criminal liability might be called for in response to certain forms of misconduct by employees or managers. We will focus primarily on issues and debates relevant to English law, though the US will serve as an important comparison throughout

Module provider

Surrey Law School

Module Leader

SARCH Alexander (Law)

Number of Credits: 15

ECTS Credits: 7.5

Framework: FHEQ Level 6

Module cap (Maximum number of students): N/A

Module Availability

Semester 2

Prerequisites / Co-requisites

LAW1029 Criminal Law I and LAW1030 Criminal Law II (or equivalent)

Module content

Indicative module content (subject to clarification in the module handbook) may include:

Part I: White Collar Crime (offences by individuals in corporate settings)

• Fraud (Fraud Act 2006)


• Illustrative financial crimes (examples may include insider trading)


• Illustrative regulatory crimes (examples may range from money laundering to environmental crime)


• Effective corporate compliance approaches


• Critical evaluation of such offences in light of traditional principles of criminalisation


• Enforcement issues (examples may include confiscation of the proceeds of crime)

Part II: Corporate Crime (offences by organisations)

• Mechanisms of attributing corporate criminal liability (including identification doctrine vs respondeat superior) as illustrated by substantive offences


• Debates about the eligibility and suitability of corporations for punishment


• Corporate manslaughter


• Enforcement issues (examples may include use of Deferred Prosecution Agreements)


• Consideration of alternatives to criminal law in addressing misconduct in corporate settings

Assessment pattern

Alternative Assessment

None

Assessment Strategy

  The assessment strategy is designed to provide students with the opportunity to demonstrate:

• Knowledge of the main features of important corporate and white-collar criminal offences


• Understanding of the theory of corporate and white-collar crime


• Ability to analyse how relevant criminal offences apply to fact-patterns 


• Appreciation of the challenges and problems posed by expansive forms of liability in corporate and white-collar contexts


• Understanding of the ways in which criminal law might be improved in business settings

  Thus, the summative assessment for this module consists of:

• An examination (following the applicable format and procedures) to be completed during the exam period consisting of several questions with a recommended length/limit of approximately 3,000 words in total (addresses learning outcomes 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 and 10). The exam may include problem questions or essay questions or both.

Formative assessment and feedback

A practice assignment containing problem and/or essay questions of the sort that may appear on the summative exam (1500 words)

Students will be provided with opportunities to receive written and/or oral feedback mid-semester on their formative assignment in order to prepare for the summative assessment.  Formative essay questions will be of a similar type to those that may be found on the final exam.

Module aims

• Explain certain central criminal offences committed within the commercial and business environment, whether committed by individuals or by organisations
• Appreciate current practical issues and problems related to enforcement of corporate and white-collar criminal law
• Explore which elements and definitional issues might vary within the same offence in other major English-speaking jurisdictions, and provide students with the ability to debate the pros and cons of different offence formulations
• Evaluate and critique criminal liability rules used in corporate settings, particularly the extent to which they are in tension with traditional limiting principles of criminalisation, theories of punishment or mainstream policy aims
• Explore, and develop students' ability to construct, realistic law reform proposals or solutions that aim to solve or improve problems within the law in this area
• Analyse factors tending to contribute to criminal misconduct in corporate contexts, with a particular emphasis on the organisational factors and incentives, as well as organisational obligations to prevent the occurrence of corporate crime
• Appreciate and assess suitability of alternatives to criminal liability in response to certain forms of employee misconduct or corporate harms
• Begin to develop a comparative perspective, drawing where appropriate on US legal practice to better understand the UK approach to criminal enforcement in corporate settings

Learning outcomes

Methods of Teaching / Learning

Lectures adopt a flexible learning approach, with a combination of mini-lectures, seminar-style discussion, interactive tasks and “bite-sized” student presentations. The teaching is delivered by academics with room for 1-2 visiting legal practitioners or members of industry where appropriate. Tutorials will enable students to discuss study skills, transferrable professional skills (such as writing, targeted reading techniques, persuasive argumentation), as well as discussing problem questions and essay questions both with the instructor and in groups

Instructors will use lectures to convey basic knowledge of the legal frameworks and of regulatory theory.  This will be supplemented by in-depth discussion of controversial issues in corporate and white-collar crime policy.  Students will apply their knowledge of law and policy to analyse and debate central issues related to the use of criminal law to combat misconduct in corporate settings. This will develop students’ ability to do both legal and policy analysis and to see how the two forms of analysis are interrelated.

The learning and teaching methods would typically comprise:

• Interactive lectures


• Seminars 

Captured content will be provided throughout the semester in line with the applicable School of Law captured content policies. This will consist of chiefly of lecture recordings and supplementary videos by the instructor or others to cover module content and deepen related topics where and to the extent appropriate.

This module embeds the University’s 5 pedagogical pillars. 1) By dealing with topics that are key to the business world and building transferrable skills of communication and analysis, the module fosters “professionally focused learning.” 2) + 3) It takes a comparative, cross-jurisdictional look at topics of global concern to companies especially in technologically oriented fields, and so promotes an “international environment at the heart of the learning experience” as well as contributing to a “global digital society.” 4) The module enables leadership in sustainable thinking, insofar as any viable approach to sustainability in industry must be ethically and legally sustainable in light of the normative frameworks and rule of law values examined in this module. 5) Finally, the module supports students in their “development to become an independent and resourceful learner” by teaching reading techniques, analytical and communication skills, independent research and problem-solving plus creative thinking and persuasive evidence-based argumentation.

Indicated Lecture Hours (which may also include seminars, tutorials, workshops and other contact time) are approximate and may include in-class tests where one or more of these are an assessment on the module. In-class tests are scheduled/organised separately to taught content and will be published on to student personal timetables, where they apply to taken modules, as soon as they are finalised by central administration. This will usually be after the initial publication of the teaching timetable for the relevant semester.

Reading list

https://readinglists.surrey.ac.uk
Upon accessing the reading list, please search for the module using the module code: LAW3141

Other information

The School of Law is committed to developing graduates with strengths in Employability, Digital Capabilities, Global and Cultural Capabilities, Sustainability and Resourcefulness and Resilience. This module is designed to allow students to develop knowledge, skills and capabilities in the following areas:

Employability: The module provides students with core knowledge of the key rules of law and judicial principles related to the use of criminal law in corporate and white collar contexts. Corporate and White Collar Crime Law is a key area of work in most general practices. Students are expected to develop and refine their problem-solving skills and to engage in structuring their analyses and arguments in a practical way to a professional standard with clear reference and support from primary and secondary legal sources. The assessment tests students on key aspects which are reflective of skills expected in corporate/legal environments. The examination will allow students to develop and demonstrate their ability to engage with complex and possibly opaque and fluid facts and with issues that invite a diverse and open-ended range of responses. The research essay will allow students to exercise their judgement and require them to display ownership and maturity in learning as they self-determine the scope and structure of their project and are responsible for ensuring that their sources are sufficient and sound to support their thesis. By dealing with topics that are key to the business world and building transferrable skills of communication and analysis, the module fosters employability.

Digital Capabilities: As with all modules, students are expected to engage with material online through effective navigation of the Surreylearn VLE and online legal databases provided by the University library. Students will use digital technology to prepare their and submit their assessment and are likely to use digital technology in aiding their preparations and presentations during the workshop sessions.

Global and Cultural Capabilities: While the module content focusses on English and Welsh law related to white collar and corporate crime, the somewhat universal nature of the core principles and values underlying the core of the criminal law allow for the development of legal understanding that can apply to criminal law in other jurisdictions. Some fundamental concepts such as culpability, intent and knowledge (mens rea), mala prohibita, criminalisation, fraud, insider trading, regulatory crime, strict liability, vicarious liability, attribution of liability, corporate compliance, and many others operate internationally and have the capability to impact the lived experiences of students in their professional lives. It takes a comparative, cross-jurisdictional look at topics of global concern to companies especially in technologically oriented fields, and so promotes an “international environment at the heart of the learning experience” as well as contributing to a “global digital society.” Additionally, the workshops sessions require students to collaborate and engage effectively to evaluate and provide feedback to each other’s work and will allow them the space and opportunity to interact, communicate and build relationships with peers from diverse backgrounds and in a way that respects and promotes the interests of cultural groups and individual rights.

Resourcefulness and Resilience: The learning teaching and assessment strategy for this module has been designed to encourage active learning through participation, discussion, peer support and reflective practice. Resilience and resourcefulness are further integrated within the module through the assessment strategy which require students to complete essays, analyses and independently developed arguments on topics related to their own interests. Students will be able to undertake self-assessment, engage in open ended inquiry and to make and defend their own choices and to determine and manage suitable tasks in the completion of their assignments. The discussions and group exercises will also build and utilize resourcefulness and resilience by requiring students to construct and adapt strategies in real time and where unknown and unpredictable variables may arise in course of the task. Students are encouraged to reflect on feedback and feedforward and to engage with constructive comments and to take ownership of their learning. Formative assessment and feedback provide an opportunity for students to fail or make errors in a “safe” environment and to learn from experience and practical application building confidence and self-efficacy. The formative and summative assessments in this module require students to develop and apply techniques that feedforward to assessments within the module and to demonstrate initiative and ownership by extending those skills to the learning and assessment tasks of other modules within the programme. Thus, the module supports students in their development to become independent and resourceful learners by teaching reading techniques, analytical and communication skills, independent research and problem-solving plus creative thinking and persuasive evidence-based argumentation.

Programmes this module appears in

Please note that the information detailed within this record is accurate at the time of publishing and may be subject to change. This record contains information for the most up to date version of the programme / module for the 2024/5 academic year.