Hussain, Waheed2019-09-252019-09-252010-03-02http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12424/174006The economic theory of the corporation contends that corporations and their managers should maximize profits because this will lead to a socially optimal outcome. Theorists often object to this theory because it assumes ideal market conditions that do not exist in the real world. Although valid, I do not believe that the “ideal conditions” objection gets to the heard of what is wrong with the economic theory. In this paper, I develop a different objection, one that is based on the idea that the corporation belongs to a sphere of our lives that is shielded from the demands of social welfare—what I call the “sphere of partiality.” I show how the economic theory leads to various counterintuitive results because it fails to acknowledge this important fact. Throughout my discussion, I focus on the version of the economic theory advocated by Michael Jensen.engWith permission of the license/copyright holdercorporationsmoralityjustice, socialEconomic ethicsBusiness ethicsPreprint