Responsible Enterprise

This fundamental work analyses the great variety of normative processes encompassed by the term 'Corporate Social Responsibility' (CSR) and subjects them to a systematic and critical examination. Domestic and supranational legislation, international law and transnational private law instruments – supplemented and superseded by soft law and informal steering by private and public organisations – are the 'smart mix' from which a global order for enterprise responsibility is emerging.

The author relates these processes to fundamental considerations on the conception of enterprise, the justification and scope of enterprise responsibility and public-private governance. She reveals that the informalization of norm-creation and its transfer to the executive and private actors raises fundamental questions of national sovereignty, democratic legitimation and rule of law. A new conception of 'law' is also required.

Part A - Corporate social responsibility
Chapter 1. Foundations of the Corporate Social Responsibility Discussion
. I. Renaissance of historical conceptions
. II. Elementary CSR conceptions
Chapter 2. CSR Conceptions of the United Nations
. I. Draft UN Code of Conduct on Transnational Corporations
. II. UN Global Compact
. III. Business and Human Rights
. IV. The UN CSR system
. V. Summary
Chapter 3. The OECD CSR Conception
. I. The OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises
. II. The OECD CSR system
. III. Summary
Chapter 4. The ISO CSR Conception
. I. Guidance on social responsibility ISO 26000:2010
. II. The ISO CSR system
. III. Summary
Chapter 5. CSR Strategy of the European Union
. I. CSR relevant European fundamental and human rights
. II. The CSR approaches of the European Union
. III. Summary
Chapter 6. National CSR Strategies
. I. CSR and national law (transnationalization)
. II. National law and extraterritorial issues
. III. National jurisdiction for extraterritorial matters
. IV. Summary
Chapter 7. Sector-specific CSR Conceptions
. I. The mining industry
. II. The financial sector
. III. The textile industry
. IV. The legal profession
. V. Summary
Chapter 8. Evaluation of the CSR Discourse and Further Questions
. I. Enterprise
. II. Responsibility
. III. Governance

Part B - Responsible Enterprise
Chapter 9. Enterprise
. I. The conception of enterprise
. II. Group responsibility
Chapter 10. Responsibility
. I. Responsibility in the CSR debate
. II. Fundamental questions of enterprise responsibility
Chapter 11. Governance
. I. Is CSR law?
. II. The CSR conception of governance
. III. Constitutionalization

Birgit Spiesshofer, M.C.J. (New York Univ.) has been working as an attorney at law since 1989 in international law firms, mainly in the areas of public policy and regulation, compliance and CSR. She established the 'gaemo group – corporate responsibility international'. Since 2002, she has served, inter alia, as Chair of the CSR Committees of the International Bar Association, the Council of Bars and Law Societies of Europe and the German Lawyers Association. She lectures on Business and Human Rights, CSR and international law at the Freie Universität Berlin and the University of Bremen.