Would corporations exist without a state to grant them a charter? Do you think private courts would recognize the "legal person-hood" these businesses currently claim?
Jackson LaRose:Do you think private courts would recognize the "legal person-hood" these businesses currently claim?
Assuming both that there is no state and no all powerful church then no, it doesn't seem that there should be any reason for the courts to invent such a privilege.
The Romans had corporation-like legal entities, but I don't know how the practice came into being. I do know that the the Catholic doctrine of Mortmain is derived from Roman law, and that both the "modern" immortal state and the corporation evolved from Mortmain.
No, state legislation is necessary to establish separate entities different from any actual person. Without this modern big businesses could not exist due to exorbitant transaction costs of contracts.
Jackson LaRose:Would non-decision making stockholders be held liable for the business' actions?
Possibly. If the company incurs debts and the creditor has voluntarily agreed to limited liability then the stockholders obviously would not be liable. But in the case of a tort the stockholders would if the company as a whole is liable. Here you have to be careful because modern tort law assigns liability in ways that courts in an anarchic society would not. Suppose for example a company truck driver rear-ends another car. In an anarchic society that would probably be the exclusive liability of the driver. In fact he would probably be liable for the damage to both vehicles. In our legal system it would usually be the company's liability.
Jackson LaRose:I'm trying to understand who would be considered liable.
Kinsella has written on this topic a few times. Try Corporations and Limited Liability for Torts.