Oikeushenkilön toiminnassa tehty rikos ja sen estämisen laiminlyönti: organisaatiohuolimattomuus oikeushenkilön rangaistusvastuun perusteena

Corporate negligence as a basis for corporate criminal liability

The article analyses the diligence requirement under the Finnish Penal Code,
according to which a corporation may be held criminally liable if no adequate
caution and diligence has been taken to prevent a criminal offence within its
business activities. Corporate negligence as a liability criterion assumes a corporation’s own negligence, which is in a causal relation with a natural person’s criminal offence committed in the context of the corporation’s business activities. Therefore, corporate negligence differs from vicarious liability, which is directly based on the natural person’s offence. In the article, a theoretically reasoned model on the liability structure of corporate negligence is established. On a practical level, the research question concerns the fact how the business activities of a corporation should be organised to adequately manage risks and, thus, to avoid criminal liability.