Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Business Law
and Ethics
**************
Paper
Prepared by:
MAUREEN GIDEON
UNIVERSITY OF DAR ES SALAAM SCHOOL OF BUSINESS
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THE QUESTION
Law and ethics are a set of puritanical restrictions which have no use in today’s
world of business for they prevent people from enjoying the maximum utility
for their untamed efforts” Anonymous.
Write critical comment on the above statement, stating the significance of law
and ethics in the success or failure of business.
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Tab le of Contents
1 INTRODUCTION ..................................................................................................................................... 4
1.1 Abstract ......................................................................................................................................... 4
1.2 Definition of Key terms: ................................................................................................................ 4
1.2.1 Law ........................................................................................................................................ 4
1.2.2 Ethics ..................................................................................................................................... 5
1.2.3 Puritanical restrictions .......................................................................................................... 6
1.2.4 Today’s world of business ..................................................................................................... 7
1.2.5 Utility ..................................................................................................................................... 8
2 DIFFERENT VIEWS ON LAW AND ETHICS AS A SET OF PURITANICAL RESTRICTIONS: .......................... 9
DIFFERENT VIEWS ON LAW AND ETHICS AS A SET OF PURITANICAL RESTRICTIONS WHICH HAVE NO USE
IN TODAY’S WORLD OF BUSINESS FOR THEY PREVENT PEOPLE FROM ENJOYING THE MAXIMUM UTILITY
OF THEIR UNTAMED EFFORTS ...................................................................................................................... 9
3 SIGNIFICANCE OF LAW AND ETHICS ................................................................................................... 11
3.1 In success of business ................................................................................................................. 11
3.2 In failure of business ................................................................................................................... 11
4 CONCLUSION ....................................................................................................................................... 13
5 REFERENCES ........................................................................................................................................ 13
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1 INTRODUCTION
1.1 Abstract
Despite the recent rash of corporate scandals and the resulting rush to address the problem by
adding more laws and regulations, seemingly little attention has been paid to how the mature
of rules may or may not affect ethical decision making. Drawing our work on law and ethics, this
paper shall explore how several characteristics of rules may interfere with the process of
reaching and implementing ethical decisions. Such a relationship will have practical implications
for regulatory policy and managers of organizations and this paper shall conclude by suggesting
how regulations and corporate ethics programs should be able to improve the ethical culture of
business and enhance the ethical decision making skills of employees.
1.2 Definition of Key terms:
1.2.1 Law
Definition 1
General: Recognized cause‐effect (causal) link or principle whose violation must or should result
in a penalty as failure, injury, loss, or pain.
Definition 2
Legal: Regimen of binding rules of conduct (whether written or not) meant to enforce justice
and prescribe duty or obligation, and derived largely from custom or formal enactment by a
ruler or legislature. These rules (laws) carry with them the power and authority of the enactor,
and associated penalties for failure or refusal to obey. The law, however, is not just a list of
'do's and don'ts,' but a system of primary and secondary rules which derive their legitimacy
ultimately from universally accepted principles such as the essential justness of the rules, or the
sovereign power of a parliament to enact them.
Definition 3
Scientific: Description of a direct link between cause and effect of a phenomenon deduced from
experiments and/or observations.
Law is a system of rules, usually enforced through a set of institutions. It shapes politics,
economics and society in numerous ways and serves as a primary social mediator of relations
between people
Other definitions
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Osborn’s: A Concise Law Dictionary
• A law is an obligatory rule of conduct
• A law is a rule of conduct imposed and enforced by the state
• The law is the body of principles recognized and applied by the state in the
administration of justice.
Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary
• A law means a rule established by authority or custom, regulating the behaviour of
members of a community, country, etc.
Shivji et al. Constitutional and Legal System of Tanzania (2004)
• Law may be defined as a body of binding rules or norms imposed on a given society
breach of which leads to exercise of direct, indirect or ultimate force by a centralized
organ (state) having the monopoly of violence. [Constitutional and Legal System of
Tanzania, I.G. Shivji et al. Mkuki and Nyota Publishers, 2004, p.6
• the collection of rules imposed by authority; "civilization presupposes respect for the
law"; "the great problem for jurisprudence to allow ...
• legal document setting forth rules governing a particular kind of activity; "there is a law
against kidnapping"
• a rule or body of rules of conduct inherent in human nature and essential to or binding
upon human society
• a generalization that describes recurring facts or events in nature; "the laws of
thermodynamics"
• jurisprudence: the branch of philosophy concerned with the law and the principles that
lead courts to make the decisions they do
• the learned profession that is mastered by graduate study in a law school and that is
responsible for the judicial system; "he studied law at Yale"
• police: the force of policemen and officers; "the law came looking for him"
1.2.2 Ethics
Ethics (also known as moral philosophy) is a branch of philosophy which seeks to address
questions about morality, such as what the fundamental semantic, ontological, and epistemic
nature of ethics or morality is (meta‐ethics), how moral values should be determined
(normative ethics), how a moral outcome can be achieved in specific situations (applied ethics),
how moral capacity or moral agency develops and what its nature is (moral psychology), and
what moral values people actually abide by (descriptive ethics).
Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary definition
• A science that deals with morals
• Moral correctness – sets standards of correctness
o Professional ethics
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o Medical ethics
o Business ethics
• Ethics means moral philosophy
o A systematic study of the ultimate problems of human conduct – what is right
and what is wrong. And ethics provides for sanctions for moral conduct.
o Ethics like morality is based on the cultural values of a given society and
individual behaviour is patterned according to the culture of that society. Such
patterns of behaviour are popularly called custom.
o What is ethically or morally accepted as being good over a period of time
becomes a custom of a particular society.
• Customs are rules that govern the behaviour of individuals in a given society. Notorious
customs are referred to as customary rules/laws
1.2.3 Puritanical restrictions
1. of the Puritans or Puritanism
2. extremely or excessively strict in matters of morals and religion of, relating to, or
characterized by a rigid morality
Puritanism is essentially a religious doctrine and institutional system of social‐ cultural, just as
political, authoritarianism. Its social authoritarianism or totalitarianism is primarily expressed
and grounded in its attempt at the total “mastery of the world” of civil society and/or culture.
By analogy to its political rule, Puritanism achieved or purported total mastery of civil society
aims to render Puritans factual or likely totalitarian “masters of the world,” both of domestic
and global culture, and all others their servants or tools.
Puritanism does not confine its authoritarian mastery or domination to polity, as well as nature,
technology, and economy, but seeks to extend it beyond these realms into civil society or
cultural life in an effort to attain or approach its absolute, total, or maximal mastery of the
world as a whole. Puritanism treats civil society, like polity and economy, as an element of the
world to be mastered or dominated and thus subjected to its sectarian mastery or religiously
factional domination, resulting in social, notably moral‐religious, authoritarianism, including
theocracy. In sociological terms, mastering or dominating civil society or culture is the integral
part of the Puritan tendency toward the “mastery” or domination of the total social system. As
Tawney (1962:198) notes evoking Weber, Puritanism in England and America “determined, not
only conceptions of theology and church government, but political aspirations, business
relations, family life and the minutia of personal behavior.” Consequently, the Puritan “remakes
not only his own character and habits and way of life, but family and church, industry and city,
political institutions and social order” (Tawney 1962:199).
Moreover, Puritanism is perhaps the most authoritarian, totalitarian or extreme form of
religion, theology, morality and all culture within Protestantism, Christianity in general and
even beyond, with Islam probably as the main functional equivalent or rival in this respect. This
is what Weber suggests by describing Puritanism or Calvinism as the “most absolutely
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unbearable form of ecclesiastical control of the individual which could possible exist” by its
intrinsic tendency to be “excessively despotic.”
1.2.4 Today’s world of business
The primary objective of a business is to make money. Why would an individual or group of
people start a business if he did not want to make money? An argument that is generated by
some is: “Should profits be the only function of a business?”
The desire for businesses to make money can sometimes lead to what is considered unethical
business practices. Keep in mind the words unethical and unlawful are two separate terms with
two separate meanings. One side of the argument states that ethics should not play a part in
business as long as the business abides by the law of the land then they should not concern
themselves with ethical behavior, but they should act in the best interest of the organization.
The other side of the argument states that for an economy to function in a capitalist fashion
that businesses must act in an ethical fashion regardless if their actions are legal under law.
Milton Friedman contends that the sole responsibility of business is to increase its profits.
Robert Almeder maintains that if capitalism is to survive, it must act in a socially responsible
ways that go beyond profit making. The views of these two individuals go to the heart of the
argument. This author believes that after reading their material that the views of both are
exaggerated. I do believe that a business’s responsibilities do go beyond what is legal. A
business has a responsibility not only to the owners or stockholders, but also to the consumer
who trust the business is acting not only in a legal manner but a safe and ethical manner as
well. If a business goes out of its way to act in an unethical fashion then the business has
broken their trust with the consumer. Once a business loses the trust of their consumers then
profits will plummet. Seeing that profits are the primary function of a business then it is in the
businesses best interest to maintain a trusting relationship with the consumers and continue to
act in safe and ethical manner.
Keeping in mind that it is not the purpose of a business to propose or to dictate legislature nor
ethical behavior to the individual, a business should not be held accountable for what a small
population of consumers consider unethical. If the practice of the business is out in the open
and hazards of their products are readily published and do not present the possibility of death
involuntarily to the consumer then legislature should not dictate ethical behavior to business
nor individuals for that matter.
In Today's Business World, Can Doing Good Also Mean Doing Well?
Most people want to do ''good work'' ‐‐ a combination of high‐quality performance and social
responsibility, says Howard Gardner, a professor at the Harvard Graduate School of Education.
The question is how. So he and two colleagues, Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, a professor at the
School of Management at Claremont University, and William Damon, a professor at Stanford
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University, created the Good Work Project to research how professionals in fields from science
to journalism have answered the question. Felicia R. Lee spoke with Professor Gardner.
In an age when Enron and other Wall Street scandals indicate that unethical, irresponsible
practices are often the norm in business, how accurate is your assumption that most people
even want to do ''good work?''
The idea that most people want to do good work is based on self‐reporting of values of the
people we studied and the fact that people choose to go into lines of work where affluence will
not be the reward. I have no doubt that most people want to do good work, but maybe a
sharper way to ask the question is whether good work comes out on top in a head‐to‐head
combat with success by any means. I do worry a lot about the idea that good work is not as
important as achieving your ambition. The young people we interviewed all wanted to be
respectable workers, but if that gets in the way of ambition, they were willing to bracket it.
Among young high school scientists, wealth is what they value.
1.2.5 Utility
In economics, utility is a measure of the relative satisfaction from, or desirability of,
consumption of various goods and services. Given this measure, one may speak meaningfully of
increasing or decreasing utility, and thereby explain economic behavior in terms of attempts to
increase one's utility. For illustrative purposes, changes in utility are sometimes expressed in
fictional units called utils (fictional in that there is no standard scale for them).
The doctrine of utilitarianism saw the maximization of utility as a moral criterion for the
organization of society. According to utilitarians, such as Jeremy Bentham (1748‐1832) and John
Stuart Mill (1806‐1876), society should aim to maximize the total utility of individuals, aiming
for "the greatest happiness for the greatest number of people". Another theory forwarded by
John Rawls (1921‐2002) would have society maximize the utility of the individual receiving the
minimum amount of utility.
In neoclassical economics, rationality is precisely defined in terms of imputed utility‐maximizing
behavior under economic constraints. As a hypothetical behavioral measure, utility does not
require attribution of mental states suggested by "happiness", "satisfaction", etc.
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2 DIFFERENT VIEWS ON LAW AND ETHICS AS A SET OF PURITANICAL
RESTRICTIONS:
DIFFERENT VIEWS ON LAW AND ETHICS AS A SET OF PURITANICAL RESTRICTIONS WHICH HAVE
NO USE IN TODAY’S WORLD OF BUSINESS FOR THEY PREVENT PEOPLE FROM ENJOYING THE
MAXIMUM UTILITY OF THEIR UNTAMED EFFORTS
Retailers view on puritanical restrictions:
Retailers find the puritanical restrictions ( Blue laws) confusing, particularly when it comes to
who is exempt from the laws and which rules apply on which holidays.
If you want to open your store for business on Sundays and holidays, you'd better do your
homework.
You can open, but you must pay time‐and‐a‐half to workers and only schedule employees who
volunteer to work. Unless you fall into an exempted category. The following are just a few
views from retailers:
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• Jon Hurst, President of retailers Association Massachusetts in Boston:
"It's a quirkiness of Massachusetts," said Jon Hurst, president of the Retailers Association of
Massachusetts in Boston. "On one hand we can be a very liberal state. But on the other hand we can cling
to some of these old rules that have since been abandoned in other parts of the country."
We can thank our Puritan forefathers for the Blue Laws, so named for the color of paper on which they
were first printed. Blue Laws originally regulated both public and private conduct, prohibiting such things
as breaking the Sabbath, drunkenness and excesses in dress.
The Blue Laws are no longer that rigid, but some say they still have a stifling effect.
"These issues, like a lot of issues we deal with in retailing, can be frustrating," Hurst said.
"Every year we put out a retail holiday schedule for our members that spells out what they should be
doing. It's confusing for the employer and the employee, because it's inconsistent. It varies from holiday
to holiday," Hurst said.
In addition, retailers find that the Blue Laws put them at a competitive disadvantage.
The Massachusetts minimum wage is $6.75, the highest in the country. At time‐and‐a‐half, that's $10.13
an hour. Compare that with New Hampshire, where the minimum wage follows the federal standard of
$5.15.
Retailers find that the extra pay can make a difference in profit margins, especially during bad economic
times.
"Ultimately, we'd like to get rid of the time‐and‐a‐half because we feel it ties the hands of the employers
and the employees. It's a difficult, costly item," Hurst said.
If the Blue Laws were to be abolished, Hurst said, employers could reserve both premium pay and regular
workweek hours for the most experienced staff instead of giving the highest pay to weekend workers,
who are often part‐time employees.
Not everyone sees the statutes as a problem, however.
• Catherine Flaherty, executive director of the New England Convenience Store
Association, said:
Members call her all the time with questions. "And I have to get the law out and make sure I
can explain it correctly," she said.
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• Sean Siegal, an owner at Marty's Fine Wines in Newton:
"Most retailers don't want to open Sundays. You've only got one day off as it is," said Sean
Siegal, an owner at Marty's Fine Wines in Newton.
Siegal doesn't believe his store would see an increase in business if it were to open Sundays.
Customers know they're closed, so they plan around it. He dismissed the suggestion that
stores are losing business to New Hampshire. "Would you drive to New Hampshire for beer?"
he asked.
Sundays and holidays have changed over the past few decades, as stores went from completely
shuttered to business‐as‐usual — well, almost business‐as‐usual. For those days, state laws still
regulate when stores can open, what they pay and whom they can schedule.
And you can open on holidays if you follow similar rules, although you first need to know
whether the upcoming holiday is an unrestricted, partially restricted or restricted one.
3 SIGNIFICANCE OF LAW AND ETHICS
3.1 In success of business
• Rules continue to be the essential guides for conduct
• Rules makes certain freedom possible and influence morality positively
• Statutes prohibiting racial discriminations
• Laws and rules effective in decision making
• Rules control the tendency to act only in our self interest
• Business require compliance with applicable government rules and regulation in order
to operate
• Rules help us to conduct our affairs in the face of such uncertainties and ambiguities
• The purpose of a traffic rule is to improve safety and minimize injuries
• In the end we are willing to invest in the capital markets and drive on highways largely
because of rules
3.2 In failure of business
• Wall street scandals arose in one of the most intensely regulated industries
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• Corporate scandals ‐ Enron and WorldCom to mention only the widely known – involved
issues of finance and accounting, which are largely rule based disciplines. This
misconduct did not occur in a corporate ‘wild west” where lawlessness required that
one make it up as one went along.
• Despite many existing rules, prosecutions, and settlements, the response to the
corporate scandals has been primarily rule‐based.
Why ethics?
Principles of ethics set the moral standards of behaviour.
o Professional ethics set standards within which a professional must act
o Medical ethics provide standards within which medical personnel must act.
o Business ethics set standards within which business community must act
Ethics provide for principles which one may be required to comply with.
Why law?
o Forbids certain actions/omissions
o Permits certain actions/omissions
o Provides sanctions against law breakers
Meaning and purpose of business law
• Meaning of business law
o Rules and principles that govern the conduct of the participants engaged in
negotiating and performing transactions by which economic objectives are
achieved.
o Rules and principles that govern the formation, business relationships and exit
from business entities
o Business laws include the law of contract, sale of goods law, banking law,
insurance law, law of agency, law of partnership, company law,
bankruptcy/insolvency law.
• Purpose of business law
o Regulates formation, operation and exit of business entities
o Controls anti‐social activities, e.g. employer dismissing employee out of spite.
o Regulates harmful activities, e.g. forbids sale of adulterated foodstuffs.
o Provides for remedies who have private grievances – the law spells out the rights
and obligations of parties. If a right is violated the injured party may seek remedy
(compensation). So, business law protects legitimate interests of the parties.
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4 CONCLUSION
After reviewing critically, we can see that it’s true that law and ethics are a set of puritanical
restrictions but which have actually many use in today’s world of business for they prevent
people from over enjoying the maximum utility for their untamed efforts and forgetting the
rules and ethics which are there in order to preserve the moral standard of behavior and
prevent or corrects certain bad actions or omissions.
Puritanical restrictions look to be very old and ancient, restricting people both morally and
religiously. They dwell more on the rules but we should not run away from them absolutely as
we see that they instill ethical practices among the managers of the firms. However, on the side
of freedom to make money, Puritanism puts a curb, as well as in the issue of maximum
enjoyment of utilities. This issue is not bad all the time as communities must have limits in
enjoying freedom and exercising them. Therefore, puritanical restrictions shape our society and
build them to make differences among ourselves in terms of culture, behavior, ethics and
religious tendencies irrespective of Christianity or Muslim religions.
5 REFERENCES
• Boston Business Journal ‐ by Mary K. Pratt Special To The Journal
• http://brochin.net
• Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Joseph_Brochin
• Constitutional and Legal System of Tanzania, I.G. Shivji et al. Mkuki and Nyota
Publishers, 2004, p.6
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