Author: Flora Kuang
The problem
What actually makes corporate governance work?Boards, incentives, and oversight matter—but they’re only part of the story. Governance only works when firms are open to scrutiny. When stakeholders can question and challenge corporate behaviour, accountability becomes real.The problem is that in many settings, people stay silent—not because they lack interest, but because speaking up carries legal and financial risks.
The idea
So what happens when those risks are reduced?This research examines Anti-SLAPP laws, which prevent firms from using lawsuits to silence critics. By lowering the cost of speaking out, these laws make it easier for journalists, employees, NGOs, and communities to raise concerns. That increases reputational pressure on firms.
The key insight is that firms don’t just respond to individual issues—they begin to strengthen governance itself.
What we find
When stakeholder voice is protected, governance changes in meaningful ways. Following the adoption of anti-SLAPP laws, firms increasingly incorporate environmental and social metrics into executive compensation and strengthen board oversight of sustainability issues. They also invest in internal systems that support accountability, including employee training and embedding governance considerations into supply chain decisions.
These are not symbolic adjustments. They reshape how decisions are made and how managers are held accountable.
From scrutiny to structure
When stakeholders can speak freely, corporate risks are more likely to be exposed, particularly in areas such as environmental performance. This raises the reputational cost of inaction.
Firms respond by embedding accountability into their governance systems. Incentives are adjusted, oversight is strengthened, and processes are formalised so that organisations become more responsive to scrutiny over time. Governance becomes the channel through which external pressure is translated into sustained organisational change.
Policy implications
Corporate governance is often approached through internal rules—boards, disclosure, or executive pay. This research highlights a complementary pathway. Strengthening legal protections for stakeholder voice can improve governance indirectly by increasing accountability from outside the firm.
This is especially relevant in areas such as sustainability, where formal regulation may be incomplete or constrained. A stronger environment for transparency and scrutiny can prompt firms to upgrade governance from within.
The bottom line
Corporate governance does not start in the boardroom. It starts with whether stakeholders can hold firms to account.
By protecting the right to speak, anti-SLAPP laws strengthen those conditions. In doing so, they encourage firms to build governance systems that are more responsive, more accountable, and better aligned with long-term performance.
Chen, X., Ke, J. R., & Kuang, Y. F. Silencing Pollution: The Environmental Consequences of Anti-SLAPP Laws.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S0022109026102658
Sustainable Development Goals
We align our research activity with the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).