Abstract The ways in which epistemic foundations of academic disciplines shape policy paradigms have been an understudied area. We illustrate such dynamics by focusing on paradigm shifts between economics and legal scholarship. Our case study focuses on the evolution of the Finnish corporate tax policy between 1991 and 2014 to illuminate complex policy diffusion through professions. First, in 1993, Finnish corporate tax policy was aligned with the neoclassical ideas of the time in a lawyer-driven process. Second, in the early 2000s, initiatives from the EU and the OECD provided these lawyers a new epistemic source for broadening their argumentation. Third, in the 2010s, the disciplinary base shifted from legal studies to economics, which coincided with administrative reforms emphasizing quantitative impact assessments. These transformations completed the shift from legal scholarship to economics in tax policy design, paving way to the entrance of economic theoretical arguments to tax policy discussions. Our findings highlight five overlapping and mutually reinforcing factors that shape knowledge production in expert groups that influence economic policy: (1) the extent to which politicians rely on expertise; (2) the balance of power between academic disciplines in evidence-based policy-making; (3) the disciplinary base to which the dominant expert groups rely on; (4) the shifts in the epistemological, ontological and methodological mainstream within particular disciplines; and, (5) the extent to which international organizations are seen as epistemic versus policy-driven authorities.
{"title":"Conceptualizing Epistemic Power: The Changing Relationship Between Economic Policy Paradigms and Academic Disciplines","authors":"Matti Ylönen, Jussi Jaakkola, Leevi Saari","doi":"10.1515/ael-2021-0048","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1515/ael-2021-0048","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract The ways in which epistemic foundations of academic disciplines shape policy paradigms have been an understudied area. We illustrate such dynamics by focusing on paradigm shifts between economics and legal scholarship. Our case study focuses on the evolution of the Finnish corporate tax policy between 1991 and 2014 to illuminate complex policy diffusion through professions. First, in 1993, Finnish corporate tax policy was aligned with the neoclassical ideas of the time in a lawyer-driven process. Second, in the early 2000s, initiatives from the EU and the OECD provided these lawyers a new epistemic source for broadening their argumentation. Third, in the 2010s, the disciplinary base shifted from legal studies to economics, which coincided with administrative reforms emphasizing quantitative impact assessments. These transformations completed the shift from legal scholarship to economics in tax policy design, paving way to the entrance of economic theoretical arguments to tax policy discussions. Our findings highlight five overlapping and mutually reinforcing factors that shape knowledge production in expert groups that influence economic policy: (1) the extent to which politicians rely on expertise; (2) the balance of power between academic disciplines in evidence-based policy-making; (3) the disciplinary base to which the dominant expert groups rely on; (4) the shifts in the epistemological, ontological and methodological mainstream within particular disciplines; and, (5) the extent to which international organizations are seen as epistemic versus policy-driven authorities.","PeriodicalId":43657,"journal":{"name":"Accounting Economics and Law-A Convivium","volume":"49 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.4,"publicationDate":"2021-11-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"74691990","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
A. Andrikopoulos, Konstantinos Kostaris, Stella Zounta
Abstract We explore social networks in accounting research. Our sample spans the 1996–2015 period and includes all research articles that were published in the Accounting Review, Journal of Accounting Research, Journal of Accounting and Economics, Accounting Organizations and Society, Review of Accounting Studies, and Contemporary Accounting Research. Employing social network analysis, we delineate and discuss the structure of scientific collaboration as it appears in the acknowledgments of published research articles. We identify the most central nodes in this nexus of intellectual partnership. Furthermore, we discover that acknowledgments constitute a small-world social network, with high average clustering coefficient and small average distance within a giant component which covers the biggest part of the acknowledgment network.
{"title":"Acknowledgments Networks in Accounting Scholarship: A Note","authors":"A. Andrikopoulos, Konstantinos Kostaris, Stella Zounta","doi":"10.1515/ael-2020-0162","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1515/ael-2020-0162","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract We explore social networks in accounting research. Our sample spans the 1996–2015 period and includes all research articles that were published in the Accounting Review, Journal of Accounting Research, Journal of Accounting and Economics, Accounting Organizations and Society, Review of Accounting Studies, and Contemporary Accounting Research. Employing social network analysis, we delineate and discuss the structure of scientific collaboration as it appears in the acknowledgments of published research articles. We identify the most central nodes in this nexus of intellectual partnership. Furthermore, we discover that acknowledgments constitute a small-world social network, with high average clustering coefficient and small average distance within a giant component which covers the biggest part of the acknowledgment network.","PeriodicalId":43657,"journal":{"name":"Accounting Economics and Law-A Convivium","volume":"40 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.4,"publicationDate":"2021-11-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"85521225","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Favourate Sebele Mpofu, Eukeria Mashiri, Patrick Korera
Abstract Base erosion and profit shifting activities of multinational enterprises (MNEs) have been a hot issue globally. Topical among the strategies employed by MNEs has been the issue of transfer pricing (TP). Developing countries are argued to be significantly affected by TP manipulation resulting in substantial tax revenues being lost. As a response to curb the unfavourable impacts of transfer mispricing, most developing countries have adopted the OECD TP guidelines and enacted TP legislation to regulate TP activities. The arm’s length principle is the core of TP legislation, yet it has brought challenges for tax administrators and their auditors in enforcing and assessing compliance respectively leading to disputes. In view of the ever-changing business world and continuous efforts by MNEs to minimise their tax obligations through income shifting, it was imperative to assess the factors affecting the effectiveness of TP audits and dispute resolutions as measures to enhance compliance and enforcement in developing countries, with specific reference to Zimbabwe. Findings include the lack of clarity in TP legislation, resource constraints and complexity of transactions, lack of expertise as well as the shortage of comparable data. Developing countries are encouraged to formulate clear TP regulations and invest in the capacitation of revenue authorities.
{"title":"Transfer Pricing Audit Challenges and Dispute Resolution Effectiveness in Developing Countries with Specific Focus on Zimbabwe","authors":"Favourate Sebele Mpofu, Eukeria Mashiri, Patrick Korera","doi":"10.1515/ael-2021-0026","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1515/ael-2021-0026","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract Base erosion and profit shifting activities of multinational enterprises (MNEs) have been a hot issue globally. Topical among the strategies employed by MNEs has been the issue of transfer pricing (TP). Developing countries are argued to be significantly affected by TP manipulation resulting in substantial tax revenues being lost. As a response to curb the unfavourable impacts of transfer mispricing, most developing countries have adopted the OECD TP guidelines and enacted TP legislation to regulate TP activities. The arm’s length principle is the core of TP legislation, yet it has brought challenges for tax administrators and their auditors in enforcing and assessing compliance respectively leading to disputes. In view of the ever-changing business world and continuous efforts by MNEs to minimise their tax obligations through income shifting, it was imperative to assess the factors affecting the effectiveness of TP audits and dispute resolutions as measures to enhance compliance and enforcement in developing countries, with specific reference to Zimbabwe. Findings include the lack of clarity in TP legislation, resource constraints and complexity of transactions, lack of expertise as well as the shortage of comparable data. Developing countries are encouraged to formulate clear TP regulations and invest in the capacitation of revenue authorities.","PeriodicalId":43657,"journal":{"name":"Accounting Economics and Law-A Convivium","volume":"33 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.4,"publicationDate":"2021-10-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"83589358","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
C. Bannier, Corinna Ewelt-Knauer, Mohamed Khaled, Jan-Philipp Kölling
Abstract Termination fees have become a frequently employed non-price term in acquisition contracts. They allow the breaking party to walk-away from the transaction after paying a fee to the remaining party. While the inclusion of termination fees has been shown to increase contracting efficiency, the fee size has received only scant academic interest. This is surprising as termination fees are often asymmetric, i.e., of unequal magnitude for the bidder and the target. Based on an international dataset of 25,026 global acquisitions between 2012 and 2015, we find that bidder and target characteristics influence the structure of termination fees. More precisely, we show that target termination fees are higher if the target is insolvent. Bidder termination fees are higher, in contrast, if the bidder is an institutional investor. Our study thus contributes to understanding the influence of bargaining power on non-price terms by examining the structure of termination fees.
{"title":"The Symmetry and Asymmetry of Bidder and Target Termination Fees in Acquisitions","authors":"C. Bannier, Corinna Ewelt-Knauer, Mohamed Khaled, Jan-Philipp Kölling","doi":"10.1515/ael-2020-0049","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1515/ael-2020-0049","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract Termination fees have become a frequently employed non-price term in acquisition contracts. They allow the breaking party to walk-away from the transaction after paying a fee to the remaining party. While the inclusion of termination fees has been shown to increase contracting efficiency, the fee size has received only scant academic interest. This is surprising as termination fees are often asymmetric, i.e., of unequal magnitude for the bidder and the target. Based on an international dataset of 25,026 global acquisitions between 2012 and 2015, we find that bidder and target characteristics influence the structure of termination fees. More precisely, we show that target termination fees are higher if the target is insolvent. Bidder termination fees are higher, in contrast, if the bidder is an institutional investor. Our study thus contributes to understanding the influence of bargaining power on non-price terms by examining the structure of termination fees.","PeriodicalId":43657,"journal":{"name":"Accounting Economics and Law-A Convivium","volume":"85 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.4,"publicationDate":"2021-09-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"75604836","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Abstract Economists have examined the rise of so-called zombie firms in recent years. Such firms remain in financial distress for a prolonged period while financial creditors keep them alive through continued lending. Based on signaling theory, we investigate zombie firms in the context of corporate restructuring and relationship banking. Combining a theoretical approach with a multiple case study on German medium-sized firms facing private workouts, we derive the following main propositions: (i) Banks face information asymmetry and may have incentives for loan extension (i.e., rescheduled installments and additional collateral) when deciding about restructuring financing. In the case of financing unviable restructuring strategies, this can lead to the emergence of zombie firms. (ii) For this reason and in contrast to recent research, not only weakly capitalized but also healthy banks may face such incentives and might end up in financing zombie firms. (iii) Relationship banking reduces bank information asymmetry. Thus, it may enable banks to detect clients’ distress situations in the early stages and to support resolving them. Hence, guiding and inspecting banks (i.e., credit guidance) to carry out supportive relationship banking might be a key to preventing the emergence of zombie firms. The propositions bear several implications relevant to academic research, bank management and banking regulation.
{"title":"Zombie Firms, Corporate Restructuring and Relationship Banking: Credit Guidance as a Key to Tackle Zombie Lending?","authors":"F. B. Fischer","doi":"10.1515/ael-2020-0065","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1515/ael-2020-0065","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract Economists have examined the rise of so-called zombie firms in recent years. Such firms remain in financial distress for a prolonged period while financial creditors keep them alive through continued lending. Based on signaling theory, we investigate zombie firms in the context of corporate restructuring and relationship banking. Combining a theoretical approach with a multiple case study on German medium-sized firms facing private workouts, we derive the following main propositions: (i) Banks face information asymmetry and may have incentives for loan extension (i.e., rescheduled installments and additional collateral) when deciding about restructuring financing. In the case of financing unviable restructuring strategies, this can lead to the emergence of zombie firms. (ii) For this reason and in contrast to recent research, not only weakly capitalized but also healthy banks may face such incentives and might end up in financing zombie firms. (iii) Relationship banking reduces bank information asymmetry. Thus, it may enable banks to detect clients’ distress situations in the early stages and to support resolving them. Hence, guiding and inspecting banks (i.e., credit guidance) to carry out supportive relationship banking might be a key to preventing the emergence of zombie firms. The propositions bear several implications relevant to academic research, bank management and banking regulation.","PeriodicalId":43657,"journal":{"name":"Accounting Economics and Law-A Convivium","volume":"39 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.4,"publicationDate":"2021-08-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"85731232","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Abstract Ramanna (Unreliable accounts: How regulators fabricate conceptual narratives to diffuse criticism. Accounting, Economics and Law: A Convivium, this issue) argues that the FASB’s new Conceptual Framework deemphasizes reliability, and especially verifiability, in favor of representational faithfulness to facilitate the FASB’s promotion of an “asset-liability” approach measured at fair values. More importantly, he argues that this change is likely to generate costly unintended consequences by undermining reporting quality. We agree and consider more broadly whether FASB creates social value through better accounting knowledge, and whether it is time to sunset the FASB monopoly in establishing accounting standards.
{"title":"The Social Value of FASB","authors":"Gregory B. Waymire, Sudipta Basu","doi":"10.2139/ssrn.3889093","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3889093","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract Ramanna (Unreliable accounts: How regulators fabricate conceptual narratives to diffuse criticism. Accounting, Economics and Law: A Convivium, this issue) argues that the FASB’s new Conceptual Framework deemphasizes reliability, and especially verifiability, in favor of representational faithfulness to facilitate the FASB’s promotion of an “asset-liability” approach measured at fair values. More importantly, he argues that this change is likely to generate costly unintended consequences by undermining reporting quality. We agree and consider more broadly whether FASB creates social value through better accounting knowledge, and whether it is time to sunset the FASB monopoly in establishing accounting standards.","PeriodicalId":43657,"journal":{"name":"Accounting Economics and Law-A Convivium","volume":"9 1","pages":"153 - 180"},"PeriodicalIF":1.4,"publicationDate":"2021-07-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"82046157","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Abstract The global financial crisis of 2007–08 provided an obvious reason for rethinking finance, its regulation, and benefits for society. Economics experts, in particular, issued policy reports on how to fix the financial system. Whether and how such policy recommendations translated into law is the topic of this article. It introduces a set of theories elaborating on how the legal system may tap social theory in general and economic expertise in particular, arguing for the concept of framing as a focal point. A case study on the Kay Review of UK equity markets tests and illustrates the theory. The study highlights the normative, technical, political, and capture issues that arise all the way down from a specific policy proposal rooted in economic theory and empirical research to the technical details of financial law and concludes with a comment on the current reform efforts of the Financial Conduct Authority on a new consumer duty. Eventually, the case study allows us to reflect on the strengths and limitations of the existing theories of how social theory and law interact and to provide some directions for future research.
{"title":"Framing the Law and Policy of Finance","authors":"Thomas Coendet","doi":"10.1515/ael-2020-0126","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1515/ael-2020-0126","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract The global financial crisis of 2007–08 provided an obvious reason for rethinking finance, its regulation, and benefits for society. Economics experts, in particular, issued policy reports on how to fix the financial system. Whether and how such policy recommendations translated into law is the topic of this article. It introduces a set of theories elaborating on how the legal system may tap social theory in general and economic expertise in particular, arguing for the concept of framing as a focal point. A case study on the Kay Review of UK equity markets tests and illustrates the theory. The study highlights the normative, technical, political, and capture issues that arise all the way down from a specific policy proposal rooted in economic theory and empirical research to the technical details of financial law and concludes with a comment on the current reform efforts of the Financial Conduct Authority on a new consumer duty. Eventually, the case study allows us to reflect on the strengths and limitations of the existing theories of how social theory and law interact and to provide some directions for future research.","PeriodicalId":43657,"journal":{"name":"Accounting Economics and Law-A Convivium","volume":"38 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.4,"publicationDate":"2021-07-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"74904553","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Martyna Wilmanowicz-Słupczewska, Maciej Serowaniec, Jacek Wantoch-Rekowski
Abstract The Visegrad Group is a regional form of cooperation of four Central European states, i.e. Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, and Hungary. The above states have been members of the European Union since 2004. What is more, the Visegrad Group is recognized as an alliance and forum for exchanging experiences and developing common positions on matters of particular importance for the future of the region and the European Union. The constitutional provisions of the Visegrad Group states regarding the legal and constitutional status of a central bank were analysed and compared on the basis of analogies and differences. Importantly, today central banks play a significant role in the socio-economic and political system of a state. In particular, the article contains an innovative approach to the subject by comparing the subject matter from the perspective of constitutional regulations. The considerations are based on both the literature of scientific representatives and constitutional regulations, creating a complete and original presentation of the issue.
{"title":"Central Banks of the Visegrad Group States in the Light of Constitutional Regulations","authors":"Martyna Wilmanowicz-Słupczewska, Maciej Serowaniec, Jacek Wantoch-Rekowski","doi":"10.1515/ael-2019-0078","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1515/ael-2019-0078","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract The Visegrad Group is a regional form of cooperation of four Central European states, i.e. Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, and Hungary. The above states have been members of the European Union since 2004. What is more, the Visegrad Group is recognized as an alliance and forum for exchanging experiences and developing common positions on matters of particular importance for the future of the region and the European Union. The constitutional provisions of the Visegrad Group states regarding the legal and constitutional status of a central bank were analysed and compared on the basis of analogies and differences. Importantly, today central banks play a significant role in the socio-economic and political system of a state. In particular, the article contains an innovative approach to the subject by comparing the subject matter from the perspective of constitutional regulations. The considerations are based on both the literature of scientific representatives and constitutional regulations, creating a complete and original presentation of the issue.","PeriodicalId":43657,"journal":{"name":"Accounting Economics and Law-A Convivium","volume":"8 1","pages":"243 - 286"},"PeriodicalIF":1.4,"publicationDate":"2021-06-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"82133411","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Abstract This study examines the interplay between tax haven use, geographic disclosures and corporate tax avoidance. Based on a panel of 497 non-financial EU listed firms during the period 2006–2012, we provide evidence that corporate groups with affiliates in tax havens tend to have lower effective tax rates and lower geographic disclosures fineness scores. We, also, find a positive association between geographic disclosures fineness scores and the firms’ effective tax rates. We, further, find that the negative association between tax haven use and the effective tax rate is more pronounced for firms disclosing geographic information at a more aggregated level, showing a moderating effect of geographic disclosures fineness on such association. Our findings are based upon hand-collected data on corporate geographical dispersion, and corroborated by several additional and robustness tests. The research results should be of concern to policymakers and others interested in multinational companies’ segment reporting practices and tax planning activities.
{"title":"The Interplay Between Tax Havens, Geographic Disclosures and Corporate Tax Avoidance: Evidence from European Union","authors":"Sameh Kobbi-Fakhfakh","doi":"10.1515/ael-2021-0008","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1515/ael-2021-0008","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract This study examines the interplay between tax haven use, geographic disclosures and corporate tax avoidance. Based on a panel of 497 non-financial EU listed firms during the period 2006–2012, we provide evidence that corporate groups with affiliates in tax havens tend to have lower effective tax rates and lower geographic disclosures fineness scores. We, also, find a positive association between geographic disclosures fineness scores and the firms’ effective tax rates. We, further, find that the negative association between tax haven use and the effective tax rate is more pronounced for firms disclosing geographic information at a more aggregated level, showing a moderating effect of geographic disclosures fineness on such association. Our findings are based upon hand-collected data on corporate geographical dispersion, and corroborated by several additional and robustness tests. The research results should be of concern to policymakers and others interested in multinational companies’ segment reporting practices and tax planning activities.","PeriodicalId":43657,"journal":{"name":"Accounting Economics and Law-A Convivium","volume":"47 5","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.4,"publicationDate":"2021-06-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"72487305","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
京公网安备 11010802042870号
京ICP备2023020795号-1
扫码关注我们
求助内容：
应助结果提醒方式：