Ethics and Justice – What Penalty Should Volkswagen Be Compelled to Pay for its Unethical and Unlawful Conduct, and on What Basis?

Abstract

In September 2015 Volkswagen disclosed that nearly 11 million diesel VW automobiles were intentionally equipped with “defeat device” software that allowed the company to cheat emission testing. VW engineers were concerned that the only way to pass U.S. emission standards was to use a system normally utilized in much larger diesel engines. The larger diesel system would involve an increase in cost which VW was unwilling to accept due to the competitive U.S. cost market. This led VW to seek an alternative, and the software emissions cheat system became the favored option. What should VW’s penalty be for unethical and unlawful conduct?