Kmetyk K. International and Legal Aspects of Transnational Corporation Business.

This dissertation proposes comprehensive research into the legal theoretical fundamentals of transnational corporation (TNC) business involved in modern international economic relations and subject to international legal regulation. The author investigates the historical aspects of TNC formation and development. The general factor behind the appearance of TNC from the end of the 19th century - beginning of the 20th century is specified, which was the development processes of internationalization based on the deepening international divisions of labor and the introduction of new technologies, which made possible the broad separation of different technological processes from the transnationalization of capital. The problematic issue of unifying the "transnational corporation" concept in international law theory is raised. Up until the present day, there has been no stable and generally accepted definition of this concept in scholarly legal literature and international legal acts. The author proposes to use the definition of the concept of "transnational corporation" contained in the Draft United Nations Code of Conduct on Transnational Corporations developed within the UNO and outlines the basic legal features of TNCs, which differentiates TNCs from other international monopolies. Emphasis is placed on the issue of the international legal capacity of TNCs as participants of international economic relations, the prospects of its growth within the globalization of the world economy. A general characterization of the concept of various scholars with respect to the international legal capacity of TNCs is provided. The necessity of rethinking the issue of international legal capacity has been demonstrated, as today, general theory of international law does not account for actual modern trends and does not fit present-day practice. The author analyzes the problem of giving large TNCs the status of subjects of modern international law. The history of the development of the international legal regulation of the functioning of transnational corporation business has been researched, which made it possible to systematize almost all international legal acts known at the moment of the dissertation, the provisions of which legal acts regulate the legal status and business of TNCs as an integral organization. A conclusion is made about the necessity to develop and adopt a codified international legal act on the status of transnational corporations as the basis for further comprehensive TNC business regulation at the global and regional levels. The importance of international "soft law" norms in the process of TNC business regulation has been substantiated. It has been stressed that they may be an intermediate stage for the creation of international law norms or a method for confirming current conventional international legal norms. The expertise of the International Court of Justice in international legal regulation of TNC business has been considered. As a result of an examination of decisions in cases involving TNCs, it has been concluded that the practice of the mentioned Court performs a support function in the mechanism of international legal regulation of TNC business.