IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/mhr/finarc/urnsici0015-2218(201203)681_83llatar_2.0.tx_2-o.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Limited Liability, Asymmetric Taxation, and Risk Taking - Why Partial Tax Neutralities Can Be Harmful

Author

Listed:
  • Ralf Ewert
  • Rainer Niemann

Abstract

We examine the combined effects of asymmetric taxation and limited liability on optimal risk taking of investors. Given an optimal risk level in the no-tax case under full liability, loss-offset restrictions reduce, and limited liability increases, the incentives for taking risk. For every degree of limited liability we find corresponding loss-offset limitations inducing the same optimal risk level as in the reference case. In our model, full liability requires symmetric taxation, and limited liability requires asymmetric taxation of profits and losses. Tax effects under risk aversion are similar to those under risk neutrality.

Suggested Citation

  • Ralf Ewert & Rainer Niemann, 2012. "Limited Liability, Asymmetric Taxation, and Risk Taking - Why Partial Tax Neutralities Can Be Harmful," FinanzArchiv: Public Finance Analysis, Mohr Siebeck, Tübingen, vol. 68(1), pages 83-120, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:mhr:finarc:urn:sici:0015-2218(201203)68:1_83:llatar_2.0.tx_2-o
    DOI: 10.1628/001522108X632023
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mohrsiebeck.com/en/article/limited-liability-asymmetric-taxation-and-risk-taking-why-partial-tax-neutralities-can-be-harmful-101628001522112x632023
    Download Restriction: Fulltext access is included for subscribers to the printed version.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1628/001522108X632023?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Devereux, Michael P & Griffith, Rachel, 2003. "Evaluating Tax Policy for Location Decisions," International Tax and Public Finance, Springer;International Institute of Public Finance, vol. 10(2), pages 107-126, March.
    2. Alworth, Julian S, 1979. "Investment Incentives, Corporate Taxation and Efficiency in the Allocation of Capital-A Comment," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 89(355), pages 663-665, September.
    3. de Mooij, Ruud A & Ederveen, Sjef, 2003. "Taxation and Foreign Direct Investment: A Synthesis of Empirical Research," International Tax and Public Finance, Springer;International Institute of Public Finance, vol. 10(6), pages 673-693, November.
    4. Devereux, Michael P. & Lockwood, Ben & Redoano, Michela, 2008. "Do countries compete over corporate tax rates?," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 92(5-6), pages 1210-1235, June.
    5. Backus, David & Henriksen, Espen & Storesletten, Kjetil, 2008. "Taxes and the global allocation of capital," Journal of Monetary Economics, Elsevier, vol. 55(1), pages 48-61, January.
    6. Devereux, Michael P. & Griffith, Rachel, 1998. "Taxes and the location of production: evidence from a panel of US multinationals," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 68(3), pages 335-367, June.
    7. Michael Devereux & Rachel Griffith, 1998. "The taxation of discrete investment choices," IFS Working Papers W98/16, Institute for Fiscal Studies.
    8. Michael P. Devereux & Rachel Griffith & Alexander Klemm, 2002. "Corporate income tax reforms and international tax competition [‘Do domestic firms benefit from direct foreign investment? Evidence from Venezuela’]," Economic Policy, CEPR, CESifo, Sciences Po;CES;MSH, vol. 17(35), pages 449-495.
    9. Boadway, R. W. & Bruce, N., 1979. "Depreciation and interest deductions and the effect of the corporation income tax on investment," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 11(1), pages 93-105, February.
    10. Burnham, Paul & Ozanne, Larry, 2006. "Distortions From Partial Tax Reform Revealed Through Effective Tax Rates," National Tax Journal, National Tax Association;National Tax Journal, vol. 59(3), pages 611-630, September.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Rainer Niemann & Mariana Sailer, 2023. "Is analytical tax research alive and kicking? Insights from 2000 until 2022," Journal of Business Economics, Springer, vol. 93(6), pages 1149-1212, August.
    2. Niemann, Rainer & Sailer, Mariana, 2024. "Do taxes explain why firms rarely use performance-based malus contracts?," Journal of International Accounting, Auditing and Taxation, Elsevier, vol. 55(C).
    3. Wolfgang Buchholz & Kai A. Konrad, 2014. "Taxes on risky returns — an update," Working Papers tax-mpg-rps-2014-10, Max Planck Institute for Tax Law and Public Finance.
    4. Mehrmann, Annika & Schneider, Georg & Sureth, Caren, 2012. "Asymmetric taxation of profits and losses and its influence on investment timing: Paradoxical effects of tax increases," arqus Discussion Papers in Quantitative Tax Research 134, arqus - Arbeitskreis Quantitative Steuerlehre.
    5. Dinkel, Andreas, 2015. "Tax attractiveness and the allocation of risk within multinationals," arqus Discussion Papers in Quantitative Tax Research 189, arqus - Arbeitskreis Quantitative Steuerlehre.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Vito Polito, 2012. "Up or Down? Capital Income Taxation in the United States and the United Kingdom," FinanzArchiv: Public Finance Analysis, Mohr Siebeck, Tübingen, vol. 68(1), pages 48-82, March.
    2. Longobardi, Ernesto & Polito, Vito, 2011. "Capital income taxation incentives during economic downturns: re-thinking theory and evidence," Cardiff Economics Working Papers E2011/15, Cardiff University, Cardiff Business School, Economics Section.
    3. Peter Egger & Simon Loretz & Michael Pfaffermayr & Hannes Winner, 2006. "Corporate Taxation and Multinational Activity," CESifo Working Paper Series 1773, CESifo.
    4. Azémar, Céline & Desbordes, Rodolphe & Wooton, Ian, 2020. "Is international tax competition only about taxes? A market-based perspective," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 48(4), pages 891-912.
    5. Pantelis Kammas, 2011. "Strategic fiscal interaction among OECD countries," Public Choice, Springer, vol. 147(3), pages 459-480, June.
    6. Peter Egger & Simon Loretz & Michael Pfaffermayr & Hannes Winner, 2009. "Bilateral effective tax rates and foreign direct investment," International Tax and Public Finance, Springer;International Institute of Public Finance, vol. 16(6), pages 822-849, December.
    7. Andreas Haufler & Sven Stöwhase, 2003. "Taxes as a Determinant for Foreign Direct Investment in Europe," ifo DICE Report, ifo Institute - Leibniz Institute for Economic Research at the University of Munich, vol. 1(2), pages 45-51, 02.
    8. Aleksandra Riedl & Silvia Rocha-Akis, 2007. "Testing the tax competition theory: How elastic are national tax bases in western Europe?," Department of Economics Working Papers wuwp112, Vienna University of Economics and Business, Department of Economics.
    9. Fuest, Clemens & Gründler, Klaus & Potrafke, Niklas & Ruthardt, Fabian, 2024. "Read my lips? Taxes and elections," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 236(C).
    10. Guntram Wolff, 2007. "Foreign Direct Investment in the Enlarged EU: Do Taxes Matter and to What Extent?," Open Economies Review, Springer, vol. 18(3), pages 327-346, July.
    11. Aleksandra Riedl & Silvia Rocha-Akis, 2012. "How elastic are national corporate income tax bases in OECD countries? The role of domestic and foreign tax rates," Canadian Journal of Economics, Canadian Economics Association, vol. 45(2), pages 632-671, May.
    12. Hristu-Varsakelis, Dimitrios & Karagianni, Stella & Saraidaris, Anastasios, 2011. "Equilibrium conditions in corporate tax competition and Foreign Direct Investment flows," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 28(1), pages 13-21.
    13. Deborah Schanz & Andreas Dinkel & Sara Keller, 2017. "Tax attractiveness and the location of German-controlled subsidiaries," Review of Managerial Science, Springer, vol. 11(1), pages 251-297, January.
    14. Norman Gemmell & Richard Kneller & Ismael Sanz, 2014. "The growth effects of tax rates in the OECD," Canadian Journal of Economics/Revue canadienne d'économique, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 47(4), pages 1217-1255, November.
    15. Fritz Breuss & Margit Schratzenstaller-Altzinger, 2004. "Unternehmenssteuerwettbewerb und internationale Direktinvestitionen. Ein einführender Literaturüberblick anlässlich der österreichischen Körperschaftsteuerreform," WIFO Monatsberichte (monthly reports), WIFO, vol. 77(8), pages 645-653, August.
    16. Cristian Carini & Michele Moretto & Paolo M. Panteghini & Sergio Vergalli, 2020. "Deferred taxation under default risk," Journal of Economics, Springer, vol. 129(1), pages 33-48, January.
    17. Keuschnigg, Christian & Loretz, Simon & Winner, Hannes, 2014. "Tax Competition and Tax Coordination in the European Union: A Survey," Economics Working Paper Series 1427, University of St. Gallen, School of Economics and Political Science.
    18. Norman Gemmell & Richard Kneller & Danny McGowan & Ismael Sanz & José F. Sanz‐Sanz, 2018. "Corporate Taxation and Productivity Catch‐Up: Evidence from European Firms," Scandinavian Journal of Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 120(2), pages 372-399, April.
    19. Christian Keuschnigg, 2008. "Exports, foreign direct investment, and the costs of corporate taxation," International Tax and Public Finance, Springer;International Institute of Public Finance, vol. 15(4), pages 460-477, August.
    20. Sanz Labrador, Ismael & Sanz-Sanz, José Félix, 2013. "Política fiscal y crecimiento económico: consideraciones microeconómicas y relaciones macroeconómicas," Macroeconomía del Desarrollo 5367, Naciones Unidas Comisión Económica para América Latina y el Caribe (CEPAL).

    More about this item

    Keywords

    limited liability; loss offset; tax neutrality; risk taking;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • H25 - Public Economics - - Taxation, Subsidies, and Revenue - - - Business Taxes and Subsidies
    • M41 - Business Administration and Business Economics; Marketing; Accounting; Personnel Economics - - Accounting - - - Accounting
    • M52 - Business Administration and Business Economics; Marketing; Accounting; Personnel Economics - - Personnel Economics - - - Compensation and Compensation Methods and Their Effects
    • G31 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - Capital Budgeting; Fixed Investment and Inventory Studies

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:mhr:finarc:urn:sici:0015-2218(201203)68:1_83:llatar_2.0.tx_2-o. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Thomas Wolpert (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mohrsiebeck.com/fa .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.