Corporate crime in Australia: The extent of the problem

Abstract

Government and public concern about corporate wrongdoing in Australia is arguably at an all-time high. However, the extent and nature of corporate crime is largely unknown; it is concealed by regulatory agency reporting practices and the absence of a single data source which combines data across all regulators. This study addresses the problem by examining corporate offending by 33 of the country's top companies, and their wholly owned subsidiaries, over a five-year period. The results indicate that corporate offending is patterned and unevenly distributed across the business community. Drawing on the findings and on their experience of conducting the research, the authors make recommendations for improving policy and practice, including the establishment of a national database of corporate offending.