MGMT 520 Legal, Political and Ethical Dimensions of Business All Discussions
Week 1
Week 1 DQ 1 (Graded)
National and International Ethics (Patent Rights)
Week 1 DQ 2 (Graded)
Disbarment of Lawyers
Read the “Disbarment of Lawyers” case on pages 225 and 226 in the Kubsek text and frame your answer around the four questions for the case study which are located on page 226. In evaluating this scenario, focus upon the question of what you would do if you are directed to do something that you believe is illegal or unethical? What if that person has the power to terminate your employment? What if you have a high level government job, and that person is the President of the United States!
Week 2
Week 2 DQ 1 Chapter 5 Problems (Graded) |
What compelling governmental interests would have to exist for these laws to be sustained? How else could the government justify their enactment? How could the laws be modified so as not to be a deemed an unlawful seizure or taking? Please study the following problems:
Chapter 5, problems 5-16 and 5-17
Week 2 DQ 2Chapter 19 Problems (Graded) |
Did the agencies involved violate Due Process or other Constitutionally mandated safeguards? What type of evidence would the agencies need to justify their actions. How might the aggrieved parties demonstrate that the agencies were acting in an arbitrary and capricious manner? How might the agencies defend against such a charge?
Please study the following problems:
Chapter 19, problems 19-13 and 19-18
Week 3
Week 3 DQ 1 Breach of Warranty (Graded) |
Arvo Lake, a retired 71-year-old man, bought an air conditioner in May. The unit was installed and operated according to the manufacturer’s specifications. Unbeknownst to Lake, the unit contained a hole in the refrigeration system that allowed Freon, the coolant, to escape from the unit. By August, the unit had ceased cooling, and Lake’s residence reached a temperature of at least 96 degrees Fahrenheit. The heat caused Lake to suffer from hyperthermia, which caused circulatory failure and then death. The executor of Lake’s estate sued the manufacturer of the air conditioner for damages resulting from breach of warranty.
Which warranties, if any, has the manufacturer of the air conditioner breached?
For a manufacturer to be liable for consequential damages caused by a breach of warranty, the consequential damages must be foreseeable to the manufacturer.
Was Lake’s death a foreseeable consequence of the air conditioner’s failure to operate properly?
Week 3 DQ 2 Environmental Liability and Due Process (graded) |
In 1979, Paul and John Reardon purchased 16 acres of land located next to a manufacturing plant in Massachusetts. In 1983, a state environmental agency, responding to a citizen’s report, tested soil samples from both properties and discovered extremely high levels of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) on the plant site and on the Reardons’ property where it bordered the site. Shortly thereafter, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) cleaned up the contaminated areas. In 1985, the EPA notified the Reardons that they might be liable for clean-up costs. An EPA investigation of the property in 1987 revealed that some soil was still contaminated. This time, the Reardons cleaned up the property themselves.
