Sotomayer challenges decisions that gave corporations "person" status

[David Farber <dave () farber net>]

Begin forwarded message:

From: Karl Auerbach <karl () cavebear com>
Date: October 6, 2009 2:44:32 AM EDT
To: dave () farber net
Cc: ip <ip () v2 listbox com>
Subject: Re: [IP] Sotomayer challenges decisions that gave  
corporations "person" status
Reply-To: karl () cavebear com

On 10/05/2009 12:53 PM, Dave Farber wrote:

> > Sotomayor Issues Challenge to a Century of Corporate Law
> >
> > http://online.wsj.com/article/SB125314088285517643.html
> > (or http://bit.ly/1cAuw2 )
...
> > But Justice Sotomayor suggested the majority might have it all wrong
> > -- and that instead the court should reconsider the 19th century
> > rulings that first afforded corporations the same rights
> > flesh-and-blood people have.

Given that corporations in the United States generally exist through  
the action of State law I have often wondered whether a state might  
say in its corporation codes that the things created under the its  
corporations laws are things that are born without the rights that  
adhere to natural persons (or, as we recently learned under FOIA, have  
rights of personal privacy.)

What does federalism mean if states can not define the scope,  
operation, and limitations of their own laws, such as their laws under  
which they grant legal existence to those cooperative structures of  
people that we lump under the name generic noun "corporation"?

Perhaps California (or another state) could say: When forming a  
corporation the founders are required to make a binding and perpetual  
choice - that the thing being formed is what today we call a  
"corporation" with its existing bag of rights or it will be something  
called a "limited liability society" (or some other name that doesn't  
use the word "corporation") in which the founders disclaim any attempt  
to create an entity with personal rights.  California might set the  
fee for the former at $50,000,000/year and the latter at the existing  
fee of about $1,000/year - that way those who want a "real corporation  
with rights" can buy what they want, those who don't can also get what  
they want.

                --karl--






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