Elspeth Berry, ‘Partnership Law: Used, Misused or Abused?’ (2021) 32(2) European Business Law Review 207-250
This article analyses the increasing use of UK partnerships for criminal purposes, often in other jurisdictions, and argues that the regulatory responses are inadequate, and must be supplemented by a comprehensive ethical framework.
It first argues that partnerships offer substantial benefits for a variety of businesses, but that they also have vulnerabilities which have led to their misuse and even abuse through criminal activities. It then analyses the deficiencies of the regulatory measures designed to tackle the abuses, including requirements to disclose participant identity and accounts, and anti-money laundering and tax evasion measures. Finally, it evaluates the use of a supplementary ethical framework to reduce the abuses, and examines how such a framework could be created. The analysis provides an understanding of the causes and consequences of partnership abuses and of how they can be overcome.
If you do not have access to the European Business Law Review and would like to read the article, please contact the author at elspeth.berry@ntu.ac.uk.