As the federal government reduces criminal prosecution of white-collar crime, states are now courting businesses by competing with one another to further shield corporate executives from legal actions that aim to hold them accountable for wrongdoing.
Aiming to attract companies to the state, Nevada has changed its laws to shield executives from personal liability for misconduct and to limit the power of activist investors. In Texas, Republicans recently created a separate new court system for corporations stacked with judges who once worked for Big Oil. And Wyoming advertises its specialized laws that help secretive trusts shield information about their ownership.
