Tag: Law & Business in Europe

At the basis of the behavior of a subject (and thus also of the evaluation of the same subject) is essential the identification of the final objectives – inspired by the values (ethic principles) of the subject – and to distinguish final objectives from intermediate ones, from operational tools and from bonds.

The EU ethical values and final goals are shown in the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the EU, the Treaty on EU and the Treaty on the Functioning of the EU. Among these, it is that the EU is a social market economy (SME) – a term in itself not clearly identifiable in its content – but that the Article 3 of the Treaty clarifies as “a highly competitive social market economy, aiming at full employment and social progress and a high level of protection. This is the basic requirement for the realization of human dignity, the supreme expression of the “common well-being” of any community.

After a depth analysis of the concept of SME, of the three above-mentioned documents and of the EC document named Europe 2020 Strategy for Smart, Sustainable and Inclusive Growth, is clear that, in the last twenty years, the EU policy management, and even more that of the EMU (Eurozone), have not followed this final objective, but they are mainly related to intermediate goals (such as fiscal consolidation and public finance), which have produced the effect of worsen the economic and social situation (social welfare) of the EU countries, and especially those of the EMU.

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ABSTRACT

Purpose: CSR is a rather new notion that can be defined as the set of rules by which the company equipped itself in order to ensure compliance with various regulations which must be considered, as well as ethical and environmental standards to be respected in relation to the sector in which it operates. Despite this international definition, it is hard to deal with this notion in a legal perspective. The paper investigates how the notion is operating in the European and Chinese Green Energy Industry.

Methodology/approach: The approach is functionalist and belongs to the method of comparative law.

Practical implications: The insights about the diverse notions of CSR in the Energy Industry can be useful for lawyers and compliance managers working in transnational contexts.

Social implications: CSR represents a way of marketing for consumers and society. Understanding the real functioning in the world of affairs beyond the policy declamations may increase the public accountability of the CSR processes.

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