The use of criminal law in relation to insider dealing in the United Essay

The use of criminal law in relation to insider dealing in the United Kingdom is both draconian and unnecessary. Discuss - Essay Example The proposed criminal laws purport that the act is unfair since an investor who has inside information is highly likely to make more profits as compared to a typical investor. Other scholars claim that unauthorised insider trading tends to increase the cost of capital on the issuers of securities; hence, reducing economic growth (Alexander 2007, pp. 229-230). However, it is undoubtedly that though the set criminal laws are meant to help the investors and ensure economic success, they are unnecessary, draconian, and obviously counter-intuitive. Wagner (2011, pp. 974-975) asserts that the criminal laws are extreme and there is a need to legalise insider dealings to benefit the markets, ensure more transparency, reduce accounting fraud, and act on timely and factual information. Various scholars posit that criminal laws regarding insider trading in the UK are unnecessary and are a burden to some market participants. This is because though such trading has been illegal since the year 1980, it has always been difficult to effectively prosecute persons who have been accused of such dealings. In most cases, the suspects are able to escape arrest or prosecution; thus, the regulators often rely on fines to punish those who are found abusing the market. It is unfortunate though that the fines have always been perceived as inefficient since the perpetrators are able to walk scot-free since they have the necessary resources to cover their fines. In that case, this only increases the rate of misconduct; making the set laws redundant (Ferran 2004, pp. 44-45). The number of insider dealing cases by the Financial Conduct Authority in the UK has heightened in the past years. Since the year 2009 to 2013, there have been roughly 23 convictions. For instance, in 2009, Christian Littlewood who was a corporate financier and an insider trader was sentenced to three years and four months in jail. It was believed that the gross profit accumulated from his

PHI 101 Metaphysics and Theories of Reality Essay

PHI 101 Metaphysics and Theories of Reality - Essay Example We live in a dynamic universe. Knowledge is continually evolving. Progress on the scientific, economic and political fronts is essential for survival. Stagnation leads to entropy. There can be no standing still or going back. Growth is a fact of life and ensures that knowledge is continuously updated, and new paradigms constantly replace the old. Once the dynamic nature of knowledge is accepted, it follows that there can be no single universally accepted paradigm to withstand the test of time. Perceptions and standards change over time and become relative to a particular period or civilization. There can be no absolute standards. Each new discovery indicates the shortcomings of previous perspectives. This mandates openness to the diversity of life. When knowledge is continually evolving, and change is inevitable, bigotry has no place in belief systems. By acknowledging that beliefs and values are relative, we open our minds to the viewpoints of others. This approach can contribute towards a better understanding of different perspectives and constitute a bulwark against fundamentalism and rigidity in beliefs. The study of knowledge clearly offers evidence of the interdependence of all aspects of the world. The evolutionary nature of the universe, and of knowledge, tends towards increasing complexity. This includes social complexity. The contemporary theory of ‘Open Systems’ emphasizes that all systems are open and demonstrates that there is interaction on all fronts, both within the component parts of a system, and with the surroundings. Interaction is a prerequisite for growth. The complexity and organization of a system can be maintained only through this openness. Just as the units of nature are interdependent open systems, human society is also an open system which can survive only through interaction. Mutual interdependence is a fact of human life. We