The Corporate Sector Authority, often shortened to CSA, functioned as a corporate authority. It held dominion over the Corporate Sector, a region situated within the Outer Rim Territories of the galaxy. The corporations that were members, or corporate interests, controlled all economic, political, and judicial aspects. These entities were charted with the responsibility of directly governing the sector.
The origins of the Corporate Sector Authority can be traced back to the Clone Wars, a period when Supreme Chancellor Palpatine began cultivating close relationships with corporations in the Corporate Sector that showed allegiance to the Galactic Republic. As the war concluded, he assembled a group of sympathetic lobbyists known as the Galactic Corporate Policy League (GCPL), which would evolve into the CSA. This granted him influence over CSA members upon his ascension to Galactic Emperor.
During the Imperial Period, the Corporate Sector Authority maintained its independence, existing outside the direct control of the Galactic Empire. The Empire engaged in formal diplomatic relations with the CSA.
In 40 ABY, the CSA formed an alliance with a rebellion comprising the planetoids Corellia, Commenor, Adumar, and Fondor. This alliance was forged to oppose the Galactic Alliance during the Second Galactic Civil War.
In 44 ABY, the Corporate Sector Authority experienced a widespread slave uprising, mirroring similar events occurring throughout the galaxy.
The Corporate Sector came into existence initially in 490 BBY. It was created to reconcile disagreements between lawmakers of the Galactic Republic and the leaders of numerous major corporations throughout the galaxy, primarily situated in the Expansion Region. The Corporate Sector was situated at the edge of the Tingel Arm within the Outer Rim Territories and originally encompassed several hundred star systems, supposedly lacking any sentient species. Corporations authorized to operate within the sector were permitted to purchase entire spatial regions, though the Galactic Republic was intended to oversee their activities.
In 403 BBY, the scouting vessel named Commerce vanished while attempting an orbital scan of the planet Nyriaan located in the Luire system.
By 84 BBY, the Corporate Sector Authority asserted its claim to the entire Luire system. However, the Republic rejected this claim. During the ensuing legal dispute, Nyriaan was placed under quarantine. In 81 BBY, a Republic court determined that the CSA's jurisdiction was limited solely to Caillte.
During the Clone Wars, the Corporate Sector Authority secretly initiated the Deluge Experiment to modify Nyriaan's climate after decades of research. This project was concealed from high-ranking CSA members to shield them from potential prosecution should the scheme result in significant loss of life. Ghurn, a Galactic Republic official, investigated the project following the disappearances of Klieri and Yrssk during their own investigation.
Concurrently, a group of lobbyists known as the Galactic Corporate Policy League, supported by influential figures such as Baron Tagge, began establishing close ties with then-Chancellor Palpatine. They likely represented loyalist companies within the sector, although during the Clone Wars the majority of the Corporate Sector favored the Confederacy of Independent Systems.
Following the conclusion of the Clone Wars, the assets of most Separatist corporations were either nationalized or awarded to loyal companies as a reward. Subsequently, several of Palpatine's influential corporate allies, led by Tagge, persuaded the Emperor to expand the Corporate Sector to encompass nearly 30,000 star systems. With the enactment of the Corporate Sector Charter, the Empire restructured the CSA to govern this newly expanded sector. According to the official field manual for the Imperial Military forces, one of the specific reasons for establishing the CSA was to ensure transparent mercantilism could occur without interference, as the Empire favored corporate competition as long as it did not impede its own interests.
The CSA acquired many of the remaining droids from the Confederacy after the Battle of Murkhana. In accordance with its agreement with the Empire, the CSA paid an annual stipend equivalent to 3% of the sector's gross product, along with a tithe of produced materials and ore. In the years following the war, a significant portion of the surviving Corporate Alliance assets relocated to the Corporate Sector. Eleven sentient species were discovered during this expansion, a fact that the Corporate Sector carefully concealed.
In 18 BBY, a pirate coalition launched raids into the recently reorganized CorpSec and surrounding areas. This forced the Empire to intervene in what became known as the Listehol Campaign. Admiral Wullf Yularen assumed command of a group of Invincible-class Dreadnaughts intended for the CSA, along with a small complement of Venators and TIE/LN starfighters, swiftly defeating the raiders.
The CSA's encroachments on neighboring systems were not always tolerated. The Kobok, a militaristic species, resented the CSA's claims on planets bordering their territory, leading to frequent border disputes. Around 15 BBY, the Koboks and the CSA engaged in open warfare. The Corporate Sector also clashed with the felinoid Trianii species. An armistice was eventually signed between the Corporate Sector and the Trianii three years after the start of the CSA–Trianii War.
During the reign of Emperor Palpatine over the galaxy, numerous companies within the Corporate Sector developed technologies for the Empire's use. However, following the Battle of Hoth, a contributing company named Galactic Electronics created a new magnetic pulse warhead and sold it to the Rebel Alliance. In response, the Imperial Star Destroyer Glory invaded the sector and seized the corporation's deep-space research facility. During the Galactic Civil War, many sought refuge in the Corporate Sector, only to discover that it was even more austere than the Empire.
Following the Battle of Endor and the death of the Emperor, the Corporate Sector attempted to remain neutral, selling products to both the New Republic and the remnants of the Empire. However, the New Republic was too preoccupied with establishing a new government to forge a lasting partnership with the corporate-minded fiefdom, especially since some within the New Republic boycotted the CSA for being as bad as, or even worse than, the Empire.
After capturing the sectors surrounding the Corporate Sector in 6 ABY, Grand Moff Zsinj conquered the sector in 7 ABY. The Corporate Sector remained under Zsinj's control until his death in 8 ABY.
During the Yuuzhan Vong War, all communication between the Corporate Sector and the rest of the galaxy was severed. However, the sector was not invaded.
In 40 ABY, several of its member companies allied with Corellia in the Second Galactic Civil War. By the war's end a year later, the entire government had been absorbed into the Confederation. In 43 ABY it was presumably a part of the Unification Summit that was led by Turr Phennir which made peace with the Galactic Alliance and the Imperial Remnant. In 44 ABY the Corporate Sector became one of many sectors in the Galaxy where there was a full slave revolt.
The Corporate Sector Authority's government consisted of several influential corporations. The Direx Board, comprising 55 high-ranking business executives, managed these companies. The ExO, or Executive officer, led the Direx Board. Other positions included Prex (President), Viceprex, Auditor-General, and the Imperial Advisor, who represented the Galactic Empire's interests. The Authority Currency Exchange served as the Corporate Sector's monetary authority. Etti IV functioned as the sector's administrative center and a major trading hub.
Similar to its other client states, the Galactic Empire maintained an embassy within the Corporate Sector Authority, fostering a cooperative relationship between the Empire and the CSA.
The Corporate Sector Authority exhibited less racial discrimination compared to the Humanocentric Galactic Empire, although it advertised on the appeal of being free of alien interests. The dominant culture within the Corporate Sector tended to prioritize an individual's financial standing over their species of origin.
Conversely, the Corporate Sector Authority had a history of violating the rights of sentient beings. The CSA held exclusive rights to exploit the sector's resources as it deemed fit. Corporations within the region commonly stripped planets bare, often employing slave labor or destroying the world's natural environment in the process. The majority of the Authority's residents belonged to the working class. Citizenship, which granted limited "shareholder" rights, was purchased, rendering it inaccessible to most laborers. Labor relations were exceedingly poor, and most individuals lived in impoverished conditions. Forming, or even attempting to organize, a labor union was considered one of the most severe crimes within the Corporate Sector.
The Security Division of the Corporate Sector Authority was tasked with enforcing laws within its territories. The CSA's police force, known as Espos, had a reputation for brutality. Many individuals convicted of political offenses within the Sector were sentenced to terms at a secret prison called Stars' End.
The Security Division also maintained a large fleet to patrol their territory, that consisted of relatively outdated vessels bought from various Imperial fleets and Imperial surplus stock. The fleet's operators were trained by advisors from system defense navies that still utilized the aging designs. Ships included first-generation Victory-I-class Star Destroyers, Invincible-class Dreadnaught cruisers, second-hand Lucrehulk-class battleships, Recusant-class light destroyers and Marauder-class corvettes. The Authority IRD was one of the numerous types of starfighters used by the Security Division, as was the former CIS Mankvim-814 light interceptor. The CSA began purchasing large numbers of Dreadnaught-class heavy cruisers as soon as they were developed. At some point prior to the Battle of Yavin, the CSA military sold a number of its older Marauder corvettes to the fledgling Rebel Alliance.
The Corporate Sector encompassed the regions of the Aparo and Wyl sectors located in the northeastern quadrant of the Outer Rim. The Galactic Republic selected this region for extensive economic development due to its perceived lack of native sentient life, a belief that would later be proven false.
The worlds within the Corporate Sector included Ammuud, Bonadan, Roonadan, Bretta, Duroon, Etti IV, Kalla VII, Kail, Kir, Orron III, Knolstee, Maryo, Mytus VII, Gaurick, Rampa III, Reltooine, Saffalore, Ulicia, Abo Dreth, Craci, Drog II, Erysthes, Kuminphal, Mall'ordian, Ession, Matra VI, Oslumpex V, Brosi, Colsa, Mos, Thosa, Tol, and the Trianii colonies of Trian, Fibuli, Ekibo, Pypin and Brochiib. The Corporate Sector Authority was infamous for devastating entire ecosystems in its relentless pursuit of profits.