Piercing the Corporate Veil and Delictual Liability: Two Avenues to Impose Liability on Holding Companies

Where someone sustains injuries arising from a subsidiary company's operations, they appear to have two main avenues available to them to hold the holding company liable. Piercing the corporate veil provides one mechanism through which plaintiffs can potentially obtain compensation from the holding company. This article describes and briefly examines the piercing route as well as an alternative solution, namely the imposition of delictual liability on the holding company for the harm suffered. In doing so, particular attention is given to proving wrongfulness in the context of delictual liability. Essentially, the article seeks to investigate whether it would be easier to institute the delictual claim directly against the holding company than attempting to pierce the corporate veil between the holding company and the subsidiary.