It has been clearly established that a cost premium for responsiveness may be justified for profitable time-sensitive products, and that this cost premium may suffice to render production in a high-cost environment competitive. Time-insensitive products considered in isolation seldom justify a...

Following the Dodd-Frank Act's mandate that public companies disclose the use of conflict minerals in their products and processes, five well-known companies established an alliance and initiated a fund to audit mineral suppliers. Since contributing to a common fund has minimal direct benefits...