Exam 5: Business, Societal, and Ethical Contexts of Law

Nobel Prize-winning economist Milton Friedman believed that:

The terms morals and ethics are synonymous.

The categorical imperative test consists of:

That corporations have a social responsibility and that profitability should be secondary reflects:

In Grimshaw v. Ford Motor Company, Ford was found liable because:

In the early part of the 2000s, Wall Street analysts rated Enron's stock risk as "staggeringly low."

Ethical problems faced by managers almost always come down to a clear choice, with one option clearly the most ethical choice.

The ________-based standard requires that the majority good be placed ahead of the individual good when faced with a moral dilemma.

In Arthur Andersen LLP v. United States, Andersen's previous conviction was overturned by the Supreme Court because it was determined that:

What ethical lapses was Arthur Andersen guilty of in its involvement in the Enron scandal? Explain.

Each of the following is a key component in the creation and implementation of a company's values management program except:

After numerous threats from the federal government to enact laws and taxes to recoup bonus money paid to executive employees at AIG, of the reported $165 million paid out, how much was returned by those receiving bonuses?

A company's code of conduct and code of ethics may be combined into a single document.

Valarie is employed as a sales representative at a major corporation. On occasion she feels that the men at her office stare at her, and they occasionally make suggestive comments that upset her and make her uncomfortable. When she complains to her human resource department, the department informs her that it will send out a memo asking the male employees to start acting more professionally but it doesn't feel that the conduct has broken any laws. When she says the company and the male employees are not acting ethically, that implies that this is a legal but not an ethical matter. Do you agree or disagree, and why?

Big Bucks Bank has published a detailed company ethical code based on an extensive values management process. The code specifies that all dealings with customers are to be fully documented and all dealings with the public not only are to be legal but should be based on what is best for the consumer. Everyone who deals with a customer is responsible for what he or she advises and must document conversations. Promotions and rewards will be based not only on productivity but also on fairness and how the customer is dealt with. At the weekly mortgage department meeting, Bill, the supervisor, informs his department that the loan production is way down and that they need to do whatever is necessary to step up the amount of loans granted. As a result, a number of questionable loans are granted that make money for Big Bucks but result in families being foreclosed on. Assuming the questionable loans to be unethically given, which trait of an ethical company has been breached?

Grimshaw v. Ford Motor Company is often cited as a failing of the management's hand approach to corporate social responsibility.

Arthur Andersen, as a result of its conviction following the Enron scandal, is now completely out of business.

That society is best served when companies aggressively seek a competitive advantage and that ethical violations will eventually harm companies reflects the narrow view, or ________ hand theory, of corporate social responsibility.

What is the difference between ethics and morals?

A company's environmental policy and employee expectations regarding protection of the environment would be found in the company's code of _______.