Enron- Question #4

I do not believe that Lay was a victim of an agency problem as he claimed. He obviously used Enron to better his own family, as it is proven in the case when it states that he used his sister’s travel agency even after being told that it would be more economical for the company to use a different one. He also used Enron to help his family as shown when it states that he hired his son even was facing fraud and embezzlement charges. Finally, he even allowed his daughter to use the Enron jet for personal use.

Even if he didn’t personally fix the books, he should bear a lot of legal responsibility for the demise of Enron. Being CEO and taking advantage of your company for personal benefit and not stopping an unethical operation, that he was fully aware of, is cause for legal action to be taken against him.