Ethics and Law

;Use three philosophical theories from Chapter 4 to analyze whether it is more important for a business to be ethical or lawful. Provide one example of a situation in which it seems to be more important for a business to be ethical rather than lawful, and one example of a situation in which it seems more important for a business to be lawful rather than ethical.

Guided Response: ;
Respond to at least two of your fellow students’ posts in a substantive manner.

Apply a different ethical theory to the examples identified by your classmate. Discuss the difficulties faced by persons in the workplace who view business situations from different ethical perspectives. Suggest ways that those differences can be overcome while still ensuring the actions of the business are legal.

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By ;definition, ;law ;concerns ;itself ;with ;issues ;of ;right ;and ;wrong ;and ;the ;administration ;of ;justice. ;Those ;who ;help ;shape ;the ;law ;need ;validethical ;reference ;points ;to ;steer ;the ;law ;in ;the ;direction ;of ;the ;common ;good.

Philosophy ;of ;Ethics

Ethics ;is ;the ;branch ;of ;philosophy ;that ;is ;concerned ;with ;the ;study ;of ;morality. ;Ethical ;inquiry ;centers ;on ;concepts ;such ;as ;good ;and ;evil ;andright ;and ;wrong. ;Thousands ;of ;years ;of ;philosophical ;inquiry ;into ;the ;field ;of ;ethics ;have ;produced ;numerous ;conflicting ;theories ;by ;notedclassical ;and ;contemporary ;philosophers. ;Not ;surprisingly, ;however, ;no ;consensus ;has ;emerged ;as ;to ;which ;theory ;is ;the ;most ;valid. ;While ;thismay ;not ;be ;surprising, ;it ;is ;troubling, ;since ;law ;is ;closely ;tied ;to ;the ;fragile, ;ephemeral ;principles ;that ;are ;at ;the ;heart ;of ;ethics.

Legislators, ;judges, ;presidents, ;governors, ;and ;regular ;citizens ;who ;help ;to ;shape ;the ;law ;through ;their ;official ;capacity ;or ;at ;the ;ballot ;box ;maynot ;consciously ;engage ;in ;the ;study ;of ;ethics ;in ;shaping ;their ;views ;on ;what ;constitutes ;justice ;or ;how ;to ;best ;promote ;the ;common ;good.Nevertheless, ;most ;of ;us ;act ;in ;accordance ;with ;certain ;principles ;that ;we ;may ;commonly ;refer ;to ;as ;our ;values. ;Whether ;we ;acknowledge ;it ;ornot, ;the ;guiding ;principles ;by ;which ;we ;steer ;our ;lives ;and ;which ;form ;the ;basis ;for ;our ;core ;ideas ;about ;right ;and ;wrong ;are ;an ;expression ;ofour ;ethical ;philosophy. ;The ;names ;of ;the ;ethical ;systems ;we ;adhere ;to, ;and ;the ;notable ;philosophers ;who ;espouse ;them, ;are ;not ;as ;importantas ;the ;views ;themselves, ;which ;help ;shape ;our ;government ;and ;mold ;our ;laws.

Philosophical ;Theories

The ;quest ;to ;discover ;ethical ;truths ;has ;led ;Western ;philosophers ;on ;some ;very ;different ;paths ;throughout ;the ;past ;2,500 ;years. ;Law ;inevitablyreflects ;a ;society’s ;ethical ;views ;and ;values. ;Therefore, ;even ;a ;brief ;glimpse ;at ;some ;of ;the ;core ;principles ;that ;underlie ;various ;systems ;ofethics ;can ;be ;very ;useful. ;This ;study ;will ;enhance ;our ;understanding ;of ;the ;common ;thread ;of ;ethics ;that ;runs ;through ;every ;nation’s ;system ;ofjurisprudence.

Ethical ;Absolutism

Ethical ;absolutism ;is ;an ;ethical ;philosophy ;with ;many ;diverse ;branches ;all ;tied ;in ;to ;the ;central ;idea ;that ;there ;are ;certain ;universal ;standardsby ;which ;to ;measure ;morality. ;Under ;this ;philosophy, ;concepts ;such ;as ;good ;and ;evil, ;right ;and ;wrong, ;and ;justice ;have ;a ;separate ;objectiveexistence ;that ;can ;be ;discovered ;and ;understood ;by ;human ;beings ;through ;philosophical ;inquiry ;and ;introspection. ;Right ;and ;wrong ;areconcepts ;that ;stand ;on ;their ;own ;and ;do ;not ;change ;based ;on ;circumstances ;or ;on ;the ;outcome ;of ;a ;person’s ;actions. ;If ;stealing ;is ;wrong, ;thenit ;is ;always ;wrong, ;regardless ;of ;the ;circumstances ;surrounding ;it. ;Thus, ;stealing ;is ;always ;morally ;wrong, ;whether ;it ;is ;done ;out ;of ;greed, ;forsport, ;or ;to ;feed ;a ;hungry ;child. ;Proponents ;of ;this ;broad ;branch ;of ;ethics ;represent ;a ;wide ;range ;of ;schools ;of ;thought ;that ;often ;includediametrically ;opposed ;worldviews.

Religious ;Fundamentalism

Like ;ethical ;absolutism, ;religious ;fundamentalism ;as ;a ;theory ;of ;ethics ;relies ;on ;the ;existence ;of ;certain ;immutable ;truths. ;Unlike ;ethicalabsolutism, ;however, ;which ;requires ;that ;these ;values ;be ;discovered ;through ;philosophical ;inquiry ;and ;introspection, ;ethical ;norms ;underreligious ;fundamentalism ;can ;be ;found ;by ;studying ;the ;lives ;and ;writings ;of ;prophets ;or ;by ;consulting ;holy ;scriptures. ;Under ;this ;philosophy,living ;a ;moral ;life ;depends ;upon ;strict ;adherence ;to ;religious ;principles ;and ;values. ;Also, ;its ;proponents ;often ;view ;theocracy ;(a ;state ;governedby ;divinely ;revealed ;principles) ;as ;the ;most ;just ;form ;of ;government.

Utilitarianism

Utilitarianism ;has ;as ;its ;ethical ;basis ;the ;assignment ;of ;value ;to ;actions ;based ;on ;their ;outcome. ;Under ;utilitarianism, ;the ;ultimate ;good ;isdefined ;as ;actions ;intended ;to ;bring ;about ;the ;greatest ;utility ;(or ;greatest ;good) ;for ;the ;greatest ;number ;of ;people. ;Thus, ;moral ;action ;underutilitarianism ;requires ;the ;constant ;evaluation ;of ;actions ;based ;on ;their ;intended ;result. ;Actions ;that ;bring ;about ;the ;greatest ;good ;to ;thegreatest ;number ;of ;people ;are ;ethical, ;or ;good, ;whereas ;actions ;that ;fall ;short ;of ;that ;goal ;are ;unethical, ;or ;wrong. ;Put ;another ;way,utilitarianism ;does ;not ;recognize ;an ;intrinsic ;value ;to ;actions ;but ;rather ;assigns ;a ;positive ;or ;negative ;moral ;judgment ;to ;actions ;only ;in ;view ;oftheir ;intended ;consequences.

Deontology

Deontology ;is ;a ;duty-based ;ethical ;theory ;that ;focuses ;on ;individual ;rights ;and ;good ;intentions. ;In ;this ;school ;of ;thought, ;an ;act’s ;moralitydepends ;on ;the ;actor’s ;motive, ;and ;the ;only ;unconditionally ;good ;motive ;is ;duty. ;Therefore, ;for ;an ;act ;to ;be ;moral ;or ;good, ;it ;must ;beundertaken ;out ;of ;a ;sense ;of ;duty. ;Unlike ;utilitarianism, ;in ;deontology, ;the ;rights ;of ;the ;individual ;are ;very ;important ;and ;there ;are ;some ;thingsone ;should ;not ;do, ;even ;if ;they ;would ;benefit ;a ;large ;number ;of ;people.

Ethical ;Relativism

Like ;utilitarianism, ;ethical ;relativism ;denies ;the ;existence ;of ;absolute ;moral ;values. ;Also ;known ;as ;situational ;ethics, ;this ;system ;of ;thoughtholds ;that ;moral ;judgments ;cannot ;be ;made ;in ;a ;vacuum. ;Unlike ;utilitarianism, ;however, ;the ;yardstick ;by ;which ;to ;measure ;the ;morality ;of ;anact ;is ;not ;the ;common ;good ;but ;rather ;the ;circumstances ;that ;surrounded ;the ;person ;committing ;an ;act ;at ;the ;time ;it ;was ;committed. ;It ;is ;aprecept ;of ;this ;philosophy ;that ;a ;person’s ;actions ;cannot ;be ;judged ;other ;than ;by ;placing ;oneself ;in ;the ;same ;situation ;that ;the ;actor ;faced ;atthat ;point ;in ;time. ;So, ;stealing ;to ;feed ;one’s ;hungry ;child, ;for ;example, ;is ;not ;necessarily ;wrong. ;On ;a ;societal ;level, ;ethical ;relativismacknowledges ;differences ;among ;cultures ;(cultural ;relativism) ;in ;the ;definition ;of ;right ;and ;wrong, ;which ;means ;that ;what ;is ;considered ;wrongor ;even ;hateful ;in ;one ;culture ;may ;be ;acceptable ;in ;another.

Nihilism

Nihilism ;is ;a ;philosophy ;that ;denies ;the ;existence ;of ;any ;ethical ;standards. ;Derived ;from ;the ;Latin ;word ;for ;nothing, ;nihilism ;originated ;as ;aGerman ;philosophical ;movement ;that ;was ;popularized ;in ;19th-century ;Russia ;and ;that ;is ;central ;to ;the ;political ;philosophy ;of ;anarchists, ;whoreject ;all ;centralized ;authority. ;In ;nihilism, ;we ;find ;the ;ultimate ;rejection ;of ;order, ;absolute ;codes ;of ;behavior, ;or ;the ;existence ;of ;anytranscendent ;truths. ;Assuming ;that ;each ;individual’s ;will, ;guided ;by ;the ;individual’s ;conscience, ;can ;dictate ;what ;is ;right ;or ;wrong, ;thencentralized ;government ;with ;its ;”arbitrary” ;laws ;and ;sanctions ;represents ;an ;illegitimate, ;oppressive ;restraint ;on ;individual ;freedom.

Virtue ;Ethics

Virtue ;ethics ;looks ;at ;the ;basic ;values ;one ;needs ;to ;develop ;to ;have ;a ;good ;moral ;character. ;We ;develop ;these ;traits ;by ;making ;personalcommitments ;and ;practicing ;them ;in ;our ;lives. ;Some ;of ;the ;virtues ;we ;can ;encourage ;are ;honesty, ;truth, ;trust, ;tolerance, ;kindness, ;diligence,and ;self-restraint. ;We ;can ;learn ;as ;well ;as ;absorb ;these ;qualities ;from ;our ;parents, ;religion, ;and ;schools ;or ;consciously ;choose ;to ;strive ;to ;bevirtuous ;persons. ;This ;philosophy ;has ;practical ;application ;in ;the ;business ;world ;because ;we ;can ;model, ;encourage, ;and ;reward ;these ;traitsamong ;our ;employees ;and ;within ;our ;companies.

Justice ;Ethics

Justice ;ethics ;is ;based ;on ;the ;concept ;of ;fairness. ;This ;theory ;is ;closely ;related ;to ;deontology ;and ;the ;rights ;of ;the ;individual. ;The ;U.S. ;legalsystem ;has ;a ;strong ;grounding ;in ;procedural ;justice ;and ;is ;focused ;on ;judicial ;process. ;Many ;of ;our ;constitutional ;rights ;protect ;the ;integrity ;ofthe ;legal ;process ;and ;ensure ;that ;all ;people ;are ;treated ;fairly ;in ;the ;courts. ;We ;also ;find ;this ;philosophy ;in ;the ;procedures ;and ;consistent ;rulesthat ;businesses ;create ;for ;their ;employees ;and ;other ;stakeholders. ;In ;a ;similar ;fashion, ;appellate ;judges ;decide ;cases ;that ;set ;precedents ;thatapply ;to ;all ;of ;us. ;They ;must ;balance ;doing ;justice ;for ;the ;individuals ;involved ;in ;the ;case ;with ;the ;ramifications ;of ;how ;decisions ;will ;affectfuture ;case ;law ;and ;society ;as ;a ;whole.