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Topic Objectives
At the end of this topic, the participant should be able to: Define the term ethics Distinguish between the four categories ethical theories Distinguish between virtue ethics ,duty ethics and consequentialism Explain the importance of the study of ethics for the legal profession Apply the ethical theories to the analysis of normative prescriptions of legal professional ethics
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Bibliography
1. From BBC Ethics: a general introduction http://www.bbc.co.uk/ethics/introduction/intro_1.shtml extracted 21st Feb 2014 2. Dr Tom Namwamba- Ethics a philosophical inquiry. Guest presentation to KSL. Available in the library and in Box 3. Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethics extracted 21st Feb 2014 4. Peter Strahlendorf Professional Ethics http://www.bcsp.org/pdf/presentationsarticles/714_1.pdf 5. Davis, Michael .Professional Ethics http://ethics.iit.edu/teaching/professional-ethics 6. Abdi Jibril & Zenebe Adelahu Legal Professional ethics. Teaching Manual( available in Box)
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Part 1
Definition of Ethics
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What is ethics?
The term is derived from the Greek word ethos which can mean custom, habit, character or disposition Also described as moral philosophy A system of moral principles Ethics is the philosophical attempt to answer Socrates' question of how one should live.
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Part 3
The Four Ethical Theories
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Part 3-1
META-ETHICS
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Meta-ethics
Meta-ethics concerns the nature of ethical thought, such as the origins of the words good and bad, and origins of other comparative words of various ethical systems, whether there are absolute ethical truths, and how such truths could be known.
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exists
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Objectivism
Other-worldly Moral values are objective Morality is absolute eternal immutable and universal Morality exists independent of human beings
Eternal spirit like realm Divine edicts
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Relativism
This-worldly Moral values are human inventions Moral values shift in time and space Morality is a mental/social construct
Individual relativism Cultural relativism
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Psychological issues in metaethics Main issue is what drives our moral choices. The underlying motivation for moral behaviour. There are three categories of drivers
Egoism and altruism Emotion and reason Male and female morality
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Kurt Baier,
All of our moral choices are, or at least can be, backed by some reason or justification Proper moral decision making involves giving the best reasons in support of one course of action versus another.
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Part 3-2
Normative Ethics
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Normative ethics
Normative ethics are more concerned with the questions of how one ought to act, and what the right course of action is. This is where most ethical theories are generated. Normative ethics is the realm of a number of theories of moral obligation
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Normative ethics
Normative ethics seeks to establish ultimate criterion of moral conduct, whether it is a single rule or a set of principles eg the Golden rule
The Golden Rule We should do to others what we would want others to do to us
Normative ethics
Ethical mandates from society and church generally do not qualify as genuine philosophical ethics because their methodology is not philosophical Ethics attempts to find through reason the best answer to Socrates question how one should live.
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Normative ethics
The three major theories of moral obligation are :
1. Virtue Ethics, 2. Deontology (duty ethics), and 3. Consequentialism.
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Virtue ethics
The leading proponent of virtue ethics is Aristotle Aristotle proposed a theory of virtue, a notion that was already a part of Greek culture. He espoused the view that the good man is one who lives in a way as to allow him to move towards the goal of man-as-such, the telos, and the way to reach the telos is to live a life of virtue
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Virtue Theories
Virtue theorists place less emphasis on learning rules, and instead stress the importance of developing good habits of character, such as benevolence Once the good habits are acquired one habitually behaves well n matter the circumstances Virtue theory emphasizes moral education Virtuous character traits are developed in one's youth. Adults are responsible for instilling virtues in the young.
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Virtue Theories
1. Acquire cardinal and important virtues Cardinal virtues: wisdom, courage, temperance and justice. important virtues: fortitude, generosity, self-respect, good temper, and sincerity. 2. Avoid acquiring bad character traits, or vices, Bad character or Vices : cowardice, insensibility, injustice, and vanity
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Duty theories
The leading proponents are Jeremy Bentham Emanuel Kant Duty theories base morality on specific, foundational principles of obligation. These theories are sometimes called deontological, from the Greek word Deon, or duty, in view of the foundational nature of our duty or obligation They are also sometimes called non-consequentialist since these principles are obligatory, irrespective of the consequences that might follow from our actions.
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Duty theories
A duty based moral theory considers motive or intention of the decision-maker as well as the nature of the act and its consequences(although consequences are of lesser importance). There are four central duty theories 1. Samuel Pupendorfs tripartite duty theory 2. Rights based duty theory 3. Immanuel Kant's categorical imperative 4. W.D. Rosss, prima-facie duties theory
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Duty ethics
Samuel Pufendorf 1. Duties towards God (know him and worship him) 2. Duties towards oneself ( to the soul and to the body 3. Duties towards others
universally binding (absolute and independent of will) conditional duties(based on contract)
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Duty Ethics
1. Rights based theory -Duty as a corollary of a right. 2. A right is a justified claim on someone. 3. An act is morally right if it respects and upholds rights 4. Rights are inherent(natural), universal, indivisible( equal) and inalienable
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Duty Ethics
The categorical imperative-(Immanuel Kant) There is a more foundational principle of duty that encompasses our particular duties. It is the categorical as opposed to the hypothetical imperative Under Kantianism, one decides if an act is right or wrong without looking at the consequences so it is an approach that is in contrast to utilitarianism
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Consequentialism
The leading proponent is John Stuart mills Sometimes called teleological theories Correct moral conduct is determined solely by a cost-benefit analysis of an action's consequences An action is morally right if the consequences of that action are more favorable than unfavorable The end justifies the means
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Consequentialism
Ethical Egoism Ethical Altruism Utilitarianism
Act- utilitarianism. Hedonism Rule-utilitarianism
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Consequentialism
Ethical Egoism
an action is morally right if the consequences of that action are more favorable than unfavorable only to the agent performing the action
Ethical Altruism
an action is morally right if the consequences of that action are more favorable than unfavorable to everyone except the agent.
Part 3-3
Ethical Egoism and Social Contract Theory
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Applied ethics
Applied ethics is the branch of ethics which consists of the analysis of specific, controversial moral issues Applied ethics go beyond theory and step into real world ethical practice, such as questions of whether or not abortion is correct Its a study of ethics as it ought to be rather than as it is. Applied ethics attempts to apply ethical theory to real-life situations
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Applied ethics
Discipline specific ethics such as business ethics, legal professional ethics , bio ethics etc frequently deal with issues of applied ethics Applied ethics is used in some aspects of determining public policy, as well as by individuals facing difficult decisions The morality of war, euthanasia, abortion, homosexuality or lesbianism are typical issues in applied ethics
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Descriptive Ethics
Descriptive ethics, also known as comparative ethics, is the study of people's beliefs about morality It is a study of ethics as it is not as it ought to be It adopts a social science rather than a philosophical approach to the study of ethics Its concern is to study specific ethical codes or moral prescriptions and observed spontaneous choices on what is and what is not considered valuable
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3-6
Desired character traits
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