사회책임투자와 기관투자자의 신인의무

A Critical issue for the growth of socially responsible Investment is weather institutional investors are legally permitted to engage in it, in particular whether it is compatible with the fiduciary duties of trustees. The precedents in US and UK on this issue give us only vague answers, so does ERISA and U.S. Department of Labor. A Report from the United Nations Environmental Programme’s Finance Initiative referred to as UNEP FI Freshfields Report has given rise to considerable optimism on this issue among proponents of Socially Responsible Investment. The present article puts the arguments of the UNEP FI Freshfields Report into critical perspective, and suggests that its findings do not call for optimism. If socially responsible investment is to become an important force for corporate social responsibility through adoption by institutional investors, it is suggested that legal reform is need. Because of the arbitrary and subjective nature of some socially responsible investment compare to the clarity of traditional fund management objectives to optimize financial returns, explicit guidance on socially responsible investment in regulation or governing trust instrument would be helpful.