Abstract
This Note examines the concept of corporate personhood and whether the state-created corporate entity is contemplated by the First Amendment. To discuss this controversy in relation to federal election laws constraining corporate financing, this Note first explains the particulars giving rise to the Citizens United case. Next, this Note examines the legislative and judicial treatment of corporate financing laws in regard to elections. Building upon this milieu, this Note presents the viewpoints of both those opposed to unrestricted corporate political speech as well as those championing a broad interpretation of the First Amendment that encompasses the corporate entity. Finally, this Note concludes that while a dramatic decision like Citizens United would normally warrant a swift remedial response from Congress, the Court's unambiguous construction of the First Amendment has effectively foreclosed any legislative response short of a constitutional amendment.
Recommended Citation
Alex Osterlind,
Giving a Voice to the Inanimate: The Right of a Corporation to Political Free Speech,
76 Mo. L. Rev.
(2011)
Available at: https://scholarship.law.missouri.edu/mlr/vol76/iss1/9