Piercing the Veil of Incorporation: Company Law for a Modern Era

The concept of piercing does not have a pre-eminent place in corporate law theory and practice, but related concepts of corporate entity and limited liability do. Piercing as a principle is as ambiguous as the concept of corporate entity, and while legislators have taken a lead in developing directors and shareholders rights, there has been little guidance or direction on fundamentally what a company is supposed to be. Consequently, issues such as when a court should pierce the veil, what constitutional rights a company may have, or its social obligations, lack any direction or consensus amongst courts and observers when such matters arise. The purpose of this article is to suggest, using examples of piercing the veil, that legislation should give some direction on the purpose and function of a company.\ud \u