The corporate social responsibility movement and law's empire: Is there a conflict?

At the heart of corporate governance and social responsibility discourse is recognition of the fact that the modern corporation is primarily governed by the profit maximisation imperative coupled with moral and ethical concerns that such a limited imperative drives the actions of large and wealthy corporations which have the ability to act in influential and significant ways, shaping how our social world is experienced. The actions of the corporation and its management will have a wide sphere of impact over all of its stakeholders whether these are employees, shareholders, consumers or the community in which the corporation is located. As globalisation has become central to the way we think it is also clear that ‘community’ has an ever expanding meaning which may include workers and communities living very far away from Corporate HQ. In recent years academic commentators have become increasingly concerned about the emphasis on what can be called short-term profit maximisation and the perception that this extremist interpretation of the profit imperative results in morally and ethically unacceptable outcomes.1 Hence demands for more corporate social responsibility. Following Cadbury’s2 classification of corporate social responsibility into three distinct areas, this paper will argue that once the legally regulated tier is left aside corporate responsibility can become so nebulous as to be relatively meaningless. The argument is not that corporations should not be required to act in socially responsible ways but that unless supported by regulation, which either demands high standards, or at the very least incentivises the attainment of such standards such initiatives are doomed to failure. The paper will illustrate by reference to various chosen cases that law’s discourse has already signposted ways to consider and resolve corporate governance problems in the broader social responsibility context.3 It will also illustrate how corporate responsibility can and must be supported by legal measures. Secondly, this paper will consider the potential conflict between an emphasis on corporate social responsibility and the regulatory approach.4 Finally, this paper will place the current interest in corporate social responsibility within the broader debate on the relationship between law and non-legally enforceable norms and will present some reflections on the norm debate arising from this consideration of the CSR movement.

An exploration of the positive and negative relationships associated with the development of asthma and atopic disorders in primary school children in Cork

Childhood asthma, allergic rhinitis and eczema are complex heterogenic chronic inflammatory allergic disorders which constitute a major burden to children, their families. The prevalence of childhood allergic disorders is increasing worldwide and merely rudimentary understanding exists regarding causality, or the influence of the environment on disease expression. Phase Three of the International Study of Asthma and Allergy in Childhood (ISAAC) reported that Irish adolescents had the 4th highest eczema and rhinoconjunctivitis prevalence and 3rd highest asthma prevalence in the world. There are no ISAAC data pertaining to young Irish children. In 2002, Sturley reported a high prevalence of current asthma in Cork primary school children aged 6-9 years. This thesis comprises of three cross-sectional studies which examined the prevalence of and associations with childhood allergy and a quasi-retrospective cohort study which observed the natural history of allergy from 6-9 until 11-13 years. Although not part of ISAAC, data was attained by parentally completed ISAAC-based questionnaires, using the ISAAC protocol. The prevalence, natural history and risk factors of childhood allergy in Ireland, as described in this thesis, echo those in worldwide allergy research. The variations of prevalence in different populations worldwide and the recurring themes of associations between childhood allergy and microbial exposures, from farming environments and/or gastrointestinal infections, as shown in this thesis, strengthen the mounting evidence that microbial exposure on GALT may hold the key to the mechanisms of allergy development. In this regard, probiotics may be an area of particular interest in allergy modification. Although their effects in relation to allergy, have been investigated now for several years, our knowledge of their diversity, complex functions and interactions with gut microflora, remain rudimentary. Birth cohort studies which include genomic and microbiomic research are recommended in order to examine the underlying mechanisms and the natural course of allergic diseases.

A study of the extent to which Irish law, policy and practice allow for Ireland's application of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, 1989 to pre-natal children

The central research question of this thesis asks the extent to which Irish law, policy and practice allow for the application of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) to pre-natal children. First, it is demonstrated that pre-natal children can fall within the definition of ‘child’ under the Convention and so the possibility of applying the Convention to children before birth is opened. Many State Parties to the CRC have interpreted it as applicable to pre-natal children, while others have expressed that it only applies from birth. Ireland has not clarified whether or not it interprets it as being applicable from conception, birth, or some other point. The remainder of the thesis examines the extent to which Ireland interprets the CRC as applicable to the pre-natal child. First, the question of whether Ireland affords to the pre-natal child the right to life under Article 6(1) of the Convention is analysed. Given the importance of the indivisibility of rights under the Convention, the extent to which Ireland applies other CRC rights to pre-natal children is examined. The rights analysed are the right to protection from harm, the right to the provision of health care and the procedural right to representation. It is concluded that Ireland’s laws, policies and practices require urgent clarification on the issue of the extent to which rights such as protection, health care and representation apply to children before birth. In general, there are mixed and ad hoc approaches to these issues in Ireland and there exists a great deal of confusion amongst those working on the frontline with such children, such as health care professionals and social workers. The thesis calls for significant reform in this area in terms of law and policy, which will inform practice.