• Research Paper on:
    Case Study in Business Ethics

    Number of Pages: 5

     

    Summary of the research paper:

    This 5 page paper briefly summarizes a case study presented by a student from an unknown source. The paper talks about business ethics as it involves a law firm where one partner embezzled money. Whether or not to report him is the ethical dilemma. The paper concludes that the senior partner should repot the crime. No sources.

    Name of Research Paper File: RT13_SA151law.rtf

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    Unformatted Sample Text from the Research Paper:
    case, Jones embezzles $75,000 and by law, Smith-the senior partner-is supposed to report it. The case explains his motivation for not reporting, which is that the firm would suffer financial  ruin, but it is also true that he feels Jones should be punished. While Smith sees only one course of action as being moral, Bellamy disagrees and suggests that the  legal course of action is not necessarily the moral one. By being honest, Smith would put his own livelihood and his familys well being at risk. Bellamy also reasons that  he himself is old and turns from a moral position to a humane one. As an old man, Bellamy-who had known about the crime and said nothing-begs Smith not to  turn Jones in. Bellamy even suggests that they not let Jones in on the fact that they know what he has done. A  student writing on this subject will want to point out that there are serious moral dilemmas involved in this case. One is the moral dilemma of being a lawyer and  having to follow the law. Even if Smith finally goes to Bellamys side and agrees not to turn Jones in, he is still being disingenuous. He is not fulfilling his  obligation as a lawyer to be honest, nor is he following the law. Whether or not the truth is later found, and it is found that Smith knew of the  embezzlement and did not report it, is only part of the problem. Smith will have to live with the fact that he is not completely honest as an officer of  the court. This is problematic for a lawyer. The case goes on to explain that Bellamy is the older partner and that Smith has a family to take care of. 

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