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Alexandre Tombini, the governor of the Central Bank of Brazil, faced a difficult situation in July 2015. Inflation was in the double digits, well above the target rate of 4.5%, and unemployment had increased from around 4.5% a year prior to nearly 8%. Any actions Tombini took to control inflation would most likely exacerbate unemployment, at least in the short run. To further complicate matters, Tombini's office was not independent of the executive branch of Brazil's government, and Tombini faced the possibility that any of his actions that were not aligned with the priorities of the current administration could cost him his job.

This case follows classes on fiscal and monetary policy in normal times and is the first class in a sequence on macroeconomic challenges–in this case, stagflation–high inflation and high unemployment. Students are pushed to consider why macroeconomic stabilization involves such acute and unpleasant tradeoffs during episodes of high inflation and unemployment. Students use the IS/LM AD/AS model as a reference.

In February 2018, Jerome Powell had taken over as chair of the FOMC. At first glance, the macroeconomic conditions inherited by Powell appeared favorable for continued stability: unemployment and inflation were low, and the economy had been steadily growing for nearly a decade. Yet despite the appearance of stability, the economy faced significant risks that required the Federal Reserve's attention. Was an uptick in inflation imminent, and if so, should Powell raise rates to limit any inflationary pressure? Or was the economy still operating below capacity, and if so, should the Federal Reserve take a more accommodative stance? To gain perspective, Powell needed to look back at the past fifty years of monetary policy in the United States.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the disruption to civic accountability by strategic corporate action in the form of SLAPP suits.

This paper provides empirical evidence of the discursive processes underpinning participatory and emancipatory accountability regimes through the lens of deliberative democracy and the Habermasian ideal of the public sphere.

Within this paper, it is argued that the strategic use of SLAPPs by corporations presents a danger to both mechanistic and virtuous forms of accountability regardless of what deliberative democratic theory is adopted. Habermas’ theory of communicative action and notion of the “public sphere” is utilised to demonstrate how SLAPPs can result in the colonisation of public discursive arenas to prevent others providing alternative (in form) and counter (in view) accounts of corporate behaviour and thus act to limit opportunities for corporate accountability.

This paper throws light on a practice being utilised by corporations to limit public participation in democratic and participatory accountability processes. Strategic use of SLAPPs limit the “ability” for citizens to provide an alternative “account” of corporate behaviour.

This paper is original in that it analyses the impact on accountability of strategic corporate practice of issuing SLAPP suits to “chill” public political discussion and limit protest about issues of social and civic importance. The paper extends the critical accounting literature into improving dialogic and participatory accountability regimes.

The purpose of this paper is to expand our understanding of the motivations for corporate environmental, social and governance (ESG) reporting.

This paper provides a conceptual exploration of the motivation for corporations to provide ESG reports and proposes deterrence theory and avoidance as a complementary explanatory motivation for such reports.

Within this paper it is argued that part of the motivation for some corporations to increase ESG disclosures is to avoid, or mitigate, the risk of class actions and the associated financial penalties. This paper proposes that in Australia the deterrence impact, and ancillary avoidance behaviour, of civil litigation class action provides a further motivation for improving both corporate ESG disclosure and sustainability performance.

This paper extends the social and environmental accounting (SEA) reporting literature by proposing deterrence theory and avoidance as a corporate motivation for environmental, social and governance (ESG) reporting. Deterrence is proposed as a different, yet complementary, motivation to the oft‐cited variations of stakeholder and legitimacy theory which are dominant in the SEA reporting motivation literature.

This paper explores the emerging articulations between microfinance and livestock production cycles among Mongolian pastoralists in contexts plagued by disaster and commodity market fluctuations. Ethnographic investigations of household production and vulnerability in two rural districts of eastern and western Mongolia demonstrates that both poor and wealthy households have become ensnared in a cashmere-debt cycle but that the bifurcation of livestock asset trajectories between large and small herds has also fostered diverse financial and herd management strategies that further exacerbate existing inequalities.

Presentation on legal risks in business cooperation in a regulated sector in Canada.

The paper reviews Canadian case law and privacy implications for businesses cooperating with regulators and the risk of such cooperation to the regulated scheme.

The public interest in fostering regulator to law enforcement cooperation creates a potential risk to the regulator's scheme whenever the cooperation creates a risk that the regulator is a mere alter ego to criminal law enforcement.

Case law in Canada considers the scope of regulator compliance functions and the impact of sharing information with criminal investigators. Too much sharing, without concern for the regulated environment may risk regulator's authority to obtain business information absent a pre‐existing independent court authorization.

The paper is valuable to any regulator in a common law jurisdiction.

Discusses the sharing of assets confiscated from money launderers by the nations that cooperate against the laundering practice, with special reference to Canada’s approach. Examines what the Financial Action Task Force and international conventions say on this subject. Reviews the fairly recent history of victim compensation in Canada and elsewhere, including Canada’s provisions for forfeiture in terrorism cases and for restitution using a victim fund surcharge on offenders. Suggests that an international convention should clearly direct how forfeited assets should be distributed to the victims of the crime; at present it is difficult for a country that prosecutes to ensure equitable distribution to all victims, especially if they are foreign nationals.

Crimes are committed for personal reasons or for profit. In any crime for a profit scenario the state has an interest in removing the profit from the criminal. Drug offences, other than simple possession, are the paradigm. People use drugs for a variety of reasons but, at least in the illicit drug trade, individuals sell drugs in order to make money. Traditionally, this was a cash‐based enterprise and, frequently, a misplaced investigative opportunity. A state can attack the criminal profit in order to attack the enterprise. When an illicit criminal activity is undertaken for cash prosecutors and investigators must look at this as an opportunity.

‘The fight against financial crime is one of the major challenges of our times. We emphasise that, as both financial services and crime become increasingly globalised, this challenge can only be met if all major financial centres work together. Effective cooperation between financial regulators and law enforcement authorities at the international level is an essential element of this…

Begins with the Canadian Proceeds of Crime (Money Laundering) Act 1991, which was amended after 2001 into the Proceedings of Crime (Money Laundering) and Terrorism Financing Act. Looks at developments against money laundering in other countries such as the UK and USA; some prominent international measures and conventions include the 1988 United Nations Convention Against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances, the 1990 Council of Europe Convention on Laundering, Search, Seizure and Confiscation of the Proceeds of Crime, the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development Convention on Combating Bribery of Foreign Public Officials in International Business Transactions, and the Palermo Convention of the United Nations. Mentions also relevant United Nations conventions against terrorism and corruption. Moves on to international standards, mentioning the work of the Basel Committee, the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund. Examines in detail the work of the Financial Action Task Force, which has become the recognised international forum on money laundering matters, and its 40 recommendations.