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Courting Shareholders: The Ethical Implications of Altering Corporate Ownership Structures

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  • Clark Williams, Cynthia
  • Verstegen Ryan, Lori

Abstract

The relationship between corporate executives and shareholders has riveted the attention of business ethicists since the inception of the field. Most ethicists agree that corporate executives owe their investors the duties of loyalty, candor, and care. These fiduciary duties undergird the promises made to shareholders at the time of incorporation, placing on executives moral obligations to engage in fair dealing and to avoid conflicts of interest. We concur that executives owe all of their existing shareholders both promise-keeping and fiduciary duties and argue that some corporate executives violate these responsibilities by attempting to withhold information from or limit information to some shareholders while courting others. We analyze the ethical implications of six techniques and tools that executives use to attract certain types of shareholders while deterring others. We conclude with recommended structural and behavioral changes to these current managerial and investor practices.

Suggested Citation

  • Clark Williams, Cynthia & Verstegen Ryan, Lori, 2007. "Courting Shareholders: The Ethical Implications of Altering Corporate Ownership Structures," Business Ethics Quarterly, Cambridge University Press, vol. 17(4), pages 669-688, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:cup:buetqu:v:17:y:2007:i:04:p:669-688_00
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Cynthia Clark & Harry Van Buren, 2013. "Compound Conflicts of Interest in the US Proxy System," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 116(2), pages 355-371, August.
    2. Yves Fassin & Derrick Gosselin, 2011. "The Collapse of a European Bank in the Financial Crisis: An Analysis from Stakeholder and Ethical Perspectives," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 102(2), pages 169-191, August.
    3. Maria Goranova & Lori Verstegen Ryan, 2022. "The Corporate Objective Revisited: The Shareholder Perspective," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 59(2), pages 526-554, March.
    4. Jocelyn D. Evans & Elise Perrault & Timothy A. Jones, 2017. "Managers’ Moral Obligation of Fairness to (All) Shareholders: Does Information Asymmetry Benefit Privileged Investors at Other Shareholders’ Expense?," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 140(1), pages 81-96, January.
    5. Y. Fassin & D. Gossselin, 2011. "The collapse of a European bank in the financial crisis: an analysis from strategic, stakeholder, ethical and governance perspectives," Working Papers of Faculty of Economics and Business Administration, Ghent University, Belgium 11/726, Ghent University, Faculty of Economics and Business Administration.
    6. Marguerite Schneider & Lori Ryan, 2011. "A review of hedge funds and their investor activism: do they help or hurt other equity investors?," Journal of Management & Governance, Springer;Accademia Italiana di Economia Aziendale (AIDEA), vol. 15(3), pages 349-374, August.
    7. Francesco Perrini & Angeloantonio Russo & Antonio Tencati & Clodia Vurro, 2011. "Deconstructing the Relationship Between Corporate Social and Financial Performance," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 102(1), pages 59-76, March.
    8. Shahzad Virk, Nader & Nawaz, Tasawar & Molyneux, Philip, 2022. "A canary in a Coalmine! religious agency and its impact on the performance of Islamic banks," Journal of International Financial Markets, Institutions and Money, Elsevier, vol. 78(C).

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