42 What are challenges to social contract theory?

While social contract theory and the “veil of ignorance” can be a powerful lens through which to view ethical decisions, it also suffers from drawbacks. First, it can be a “one trick pony” that essentially yields the same answers to each question, at least as how applied in class. When considering the implications of a veil of ignorance, often the same conclusions might be drawn with little nuance. Second, it suffers from the problem of free-riders. Not everyone will cooperate according to the terms of a social agreement, which limits the effectiveness of the theory in practice. Third, social contract theory can easily support theories of social redistribution of resources, which many find ethically questionable. Finally, the principles underlying social contract theory may conflict with fiduciary duties. For example, suppose that after conducting a “veil of ignorance” example in a corporate setting, a certain policy benefiting employees or customers was created. After all, one wouldn’t know whether one would be a shareholder, employee, customer, or board member behind a veil of ignorance. Yet, such a policy may conflict with the legal duty owed to shareholders, to which the law does give at least some form of primacy. We do not actually live behind a veil of ignorance, and thought experiments may not capture the scope of legal–or other ethical–duties owed in the real world.