This chapter serves as an introduction to the legal and ethical components of the business environment. You will learn about different schools of jurisprudence and about sources and classifications of...

This chapter serves as an introduction to the legal and ethical components of the business environment. You will learn about different schools of jurisprudence and about sources and classifications of law. In addition, this chapter offers the opportunity to practice the critical thinking skills you learned in Chapter 1.The following critical thinking questions will help you better understand the introductory topics discussed in this chapter.

1. Why should we be concerned with the ethical components of the legal environment of business? Why shouldn’t we just learn the relevant laws regarding businesses? Clue: Which critical thinking questions address the ethical components of the legal environment of business?

2. As you will soon discover, judges and lawyers often subscribe to a particular school of legal thought. Judges and lawyers, however, will probably not explicitly tell us which school of thought they prefer. Why do you think this knowledge might be beneficial when critically evaluating a judge’s reasoning? Clue: Think about why we look for missing information. Furthermore, why do we want to identify the ethical norms fundamental to a court’s reasoning?

 3. You tell your landlord that your front door lock is broken, but he does not repair the lock. A week later, you are robbed. You decide to sue the landlord, and you begin to search for an attorney. As a legal studies student, you ask the potential lawyers what school of jurisprudence they prefer. Although you find a lawyer who prefers the same school of jurisprudence you prefer, your decision is not final. What else might you want to ask the lawyer? Clue: Think about the other factors that might affect a lawyer’s performance.