Interesting US case on piercing the corporate veil
Whilst the legal system in the US is different to the English system, this case in nevertheless of interest and might signal a shift towards personal responsibility and liability generally in Western countries. So-called “light touch” regulation has patently failed and there us a growing trend in many areas of law, including in such areas as corporate manslaughter, for individuals to no longer be able to hide behind a corporate entity.
In this case, a Washington District Court found a company director personally liable for copyright infringement, on the basis that he effectively controlled the company and had a direct financial interest in moneys made by infringing the copyright.
The case concerned a company which creates niche websites for jewellery, and the sites were displaying images of another online jewelry and diamond retailer.
In it’s judgment, the court made it clear that the fact that the individual director was clearly controlling the company and it’s main shareholder were highly significant factors.
Do you think this sort of judgment is a good thing ? Should there be more areas of law where the general position that a company is a separate legal entity and therefore individuals should not be liable should be changed ?
