ABSTRACT
The ethicality of corporate tax avoidance is an important concern to many stakeholders, including corporate affiliates (e.g., managers, shareholders, employees), politicians, the public, academics, and practitioners. This chapter provides a theoretical examination of the ethicality of corporate tax avoidance from the perspectives of different groups of corporate stakeholders. We also review findings from empirical academic literature providing evidence on various stakeholders’ perceptions of corporate tax avoidance. Our review does not provide clear insights that tax avoidance on the part of corporations is inherently unethical; instead, we glean that the ethicality of corporate tax avoidance is a complex issue where, despite the decrease in aggregate tax revenues, many direct and indirect stakeholders may actually benefit as a result of corporate tax avoidance.
