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Cover of The Legal and Ethical Environment of Business v5.0
Published: 
June 2023
Page Count: 
500
ISBN (Digital): 
978-1-4533-3997-8

The Legal and Ethical Environment of Business

Version 5.0
By Terence Lau and Lisa Johnson

Included Supplements

Key Features

  • Clear, concise, and practical writing style avoids extraneous details that rarely surface in the business world
  • Engages readers with video and audio links, contemporary case excerpts, and current examples that illustrate topics of real interest in the business world and to students themselves
  • Encourages learners to immediately apply law and ethics to other courses across a variety of majors or specializations 
  • Promotes active learning and critical reflection through a wealth of thought-provoking questions and exercises
  • Ethical considerations are woven throughout and highlighted in special features
  • More than 200 embedded hyperlinks to videos and webpages to enrich online courses
  • Supportive learning elements in each chapter:
    • “Learning Objectives” at the beginning of each chapter and again at the start of each main section preview the material to come and prepare students to learn
    • “Positive Impact to Society” explores far-reaching impacts of business law and legal activity beyond the business world; includes “Questions to Consider” that invite critical analysis
    • “Video Break” features hyperlinks to pertinent videos that offer a glimpse into how legal concepts operate in the business environment; includes “Questions to Consider” that invite critical analysis
    • “Judicial Opinion” are excerpts of actual court opinions in the court’s own words, condensed and edited for clarity
    • “Practical Ethical Action” describes an ethical dilemma for readers to evaluate in the context of legal gray areas or ambiguities; includes “Questions to Consider” that invite critical analysis
    • “Practice Worksheet” encourage students to immediately apply what they have learned while the information is fresh in order to aid retention
    • “Key Terms” help students understand and become comfortable with important vocabulary and phrasing
    • “Key Takeaways” at the end of every main section reflect that section’s opening Learning Objectives; they summarize new information while it is still fresh to enhance retention
    • “Exercises” encourage students to actively consolidate and retain what they have just read 
    • “Concluding Thoughts” summarize the full chapter
    • “For Further Reading” suggest additional sources to expand and extend understanding of the chapter’s topics; include “Questions to Consider” that invite critical analysis
    • Answer guidelines for all “Questions to Consider,” “Practice Worksheets,” and exercises are provided in the instructor’s manual
  • All supplements are written by the textbook’s authors

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Students

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This textbook is suitable for the following courses: Legal Environment of Business, Legal Studies in Business, Business Law and Ethics, and Business Law (one-semester course) or similar titles that are taught primarily at the undergraduate level in business departments at two- and four-year colleges and universities.


The Legal and Ethical Environment of Business is a concise presentation of the key business-law topics that ensures every page is relevant, engaging, and interesting to today’s learners. Summaries of cases and case excerpts improve student understanding. Plentiful embedded video links expand on topics to shed light on how law and ethics impact real-world business situations. This book encourages students to retain what they learn by understanding the reasons behind the law, rather than simply memorizing facts and cases.

New in This Version

  • New "Positive Impact to Society" features in each chapter reflects AACSB Standard 9 by exploring the far-reaching impacts of business law and legal activity beyond the business world
  • Twice as many “Video Breaks” in each chapter, to offer students a glimpse into how legal concepts operate in the business environment
  • New cases and examples drawing from recent headlines, such as the Elizabeth Holmes trial (Chapter 1), January 6 riots (Chapter 1), Kavanaugh confirmation hearings (Chapter 2), the Shadow Docket (Chapter 2), Purdue Pharma (OxyContin) (Chapter 3), Kyle Rittenhouse (Chapter 3), Derek Chauvin (Chapter 3), Fox News and sexual harassment lawsuits (Chapter 4), state and federal police powers in a pandemic (Chapter 5), role of contracts in vaccine development (Chapter 6), Scarlett Johansson v. Disney (Chapter 6), Roundup mass tort case (Chapter 7), Johnny Depp defamation case (Chapter 7), the Metaverse (Chapter 8), cheaper insulin (Chapter 9), Covid relief funds fraud (Chapter 9), B-Corporations (Chapter 11), gig workers as employees (Chapter 12)
  • Updates major federal cases including discussion of Bostock v. Clayton (Chapter 1), Rutledge v. Pharmaceutical Care Mgt Association (Chapter 5), and South Dakota v. Wayfair (Chapter 5)
  • About the Authors
  • Acknowledgments
  • Preface

    • Chapter 1: Introduction to Law

  • 1.1 What Is Law?
  • 1.2 Sources of Law
  • 1.3 The Rule of Law
  • 1.4 Importance of Rule of Law to Business
  • 1.5 How Law Affects Business Disciplines
  • 1.6 Concluding Thoughts

    • Chapter 2: The Court System

  • 2.1 The Third Branch
  • 2.2 Activists and Strict Constructionists
  • 2.3 Trial and Appellate Courts
  • 2.4 The Certiorari Process
  • 2.5 Concluding Thoughts

    • Chapter 3: Litigation

  • 3.1 The Parties Involved
  • 3.2 Standing and Personal Jurisdiction
  • 3.3 Pretrial Procedures
  • 3.4 The Trial and Appeal
  • 3.5 Concluding Thoughts

    • Chapter 4: Alternative Dispute Resolution

  • 4.1 Negotiation
  • 4.2 Mediation
  • 4.3 Arbitration
  • 4.4 Other Methods of Alternative Dispute Resolution
  • 4.5 Public Policy, Legislation, and Alternative Dispute Resolution
  • 4.6 Concluding Thoughts

    • Chapter 5: The Constitution

  • 5.1 Structure of Constitution, Federalism, Preemption
  • 5.2 The Commerce, Taxing, and Spending Clauses
  • 5.3 Business and the Bill of Rights
  • 5.4 Concluding Thoughts

    • Chapter 6: Contracts

  • 6.1 Formation
  • 6.2 Performance and Discharge, Breach, Defenses, Equitable Remedies
  • 6.3 Assignment, Delegation, and Commonly Used Contracts Clauses
  • 6.4 Concluding Thoughts

    • Chapter 7: Torts

  • 7.1 Intentional Torts
  • 7.2 Negligence
  • 7.3 Strict Liability
  • 7.4 Concluding Thoughts

    • Chapter 8: The Property System

  • 8.1 Personal Property
  • 8.2 Real Property
  • 8.3 Concluding Thoughts

    • Chapter 9: Intellectual Property

  • 9.1 Constitutional Roots
  • 9.2 Patents
  • 9.3 Trade Secrets
  • 9.4 Trademarks
  • 9.5 Copyright
  • 9.6 Concluding Thoughts

    • Chapter 10: Criminal Law

  • 10.1 The Nature of Criminal Law, Constitutional Rights, Defenses, and Punishment
  • 10.2 Crime
  • 10.3 Minimizing Corporate Criminal Liability and Losses Attributed to Crime
  • 10.4 Concluding Thoughts

    • Chapter 11: Business Organizations

  • 11.1 Sole Proprietorships
  • 11.2 Partnerships
  • 11.3 Corporations
  • 11.4 Limited Liability Companies
  • 11.5 Bankruptcy
  • 11.6 Concluding Thoughts

    • Chapter 12: Employment Law and Agency

  • 12.1 Agency
  • 12.2 Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964
  • 12.3 Enforcement of Title VII
  • 12.4 Other Federal Antidiscrimination Laws
  • 12.5 Concluding Thoughts

    • Chapter 13: Business in the Global Legal Environment

  • 13.1 The Nature of International Law
  • 13.2 Trade Regulations, Contracts, and Prohibited Activities in International Business
  • 13.3 Concluding Thoughts

    • Appendix A: Constitution for the United States of America

  • A.1 Article I
  • A.2 Article II
  • A.3 Article III
  • A.4 Article IV
  • A.5 Article V
  • A.6 Article VI
  • A.7 Article VII
  • A.8 Bill of Rights
  • A.9 Additional Amendments to the Constitution
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    Instructor’s Manual

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    Terence Lau California State University - Chico

    Terence Lau is Dean of the College of Business at California State University Chico. He previously served as Associate Dean and Professor in the School of Business Administration at the University of Dayton. He served as the 2006 Supreme Court Fellow at the Supreme Court of the United States. Prior to joining UD, he was in-house counsel to Ford Motor Company in Detroit and Director for Governmental Affairs for ASEAN to Ford Asia Pacific in Bangkok. He holds a JD from Syracuse University.

    Lisa Johnson University of Puget Sound

    Lisa Johnson is a distinguished professor at the University of Puget Sound, where she serves as the Director of the School of Business and Leadership. She holds a JD with a certificate in Environmental and Natural Resources Law from the Northwestern School of Law of Lewis and Clark College, a PhD from Portland State University in Public Affairs and Policy, an MPA with a focus on international environmental policy from Indiana University, and an MFA from Pacific Lutheran University.

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