Charles Lam and Say Goo on Enforcement in Chinese Corporate Governance

"The issue of enforcement in Chinese corporate governance"
Charles Lam and Say Goo
Journal of Financial Crime
2015, Vol. 22, Issue 4, pp. 468-475

Abstract: The purpose of this article is to discuss two important aspects of enforcement of ethical standards: indirect enforcement, that is the Confucian approach, and common law enforcement. In the context of Confucianism, one should not be too attached to the liberal interpretation of the Confucian texts but must have the wisdom to apply the concepts case-by-case and in accordance with a particular context. By referring to the Confucian teaching, there are several ways to encourage the superior to follow the ethical standards, namely, education, fear of punishment by society, peer pressure, intrinsic value, continuing education and codification of Confucian value/moral standards. In addition, there are several enforcement options based on the Entity Maximization and Sustainability Model, which is highly relevant to the enforcement model of Confucianism. It is the first of its kind in strengthening the enforcement of Chinese business ethics by adopting the Confucian approach and common law approach. The two are not mutually exclusive but complementary with each other to bring the enforcement of Chinese business ethics to the next level.  Contact the authors for a copy of the article.