ETHICS AND LAW

There exists a fine line of difference between law and ethics. The former is the systematic set of
universally accepted rules and regulation created by appropriate authority, i.e. government,
which may be regional, national and international. Talking about the latter, they are the principles
that guide a person or society, created to decide what is good or bad. For a layman, these two
terms are same, but the fact is that there is a number of distinguishing point amidst these two
terms. Read the article carefully, to overcome your ambiguities.

BASIS FOR LAW ETHICS

COMPARISON

Meaning The law refers to a systematic Ethics is a branch of

body of rules that governs the moral philosophy that
whole society and the actions of guides people about the
its individual members. basic human conduct.

What is it? Set of rules and regulations Set of guidelines

Governed by Government Individual, Legal and
Professional norms
Expression Expressed and published in They are abstract.
writing.

Violation. Violation of law is not permissible There is no punishment

which may result in punishment for violation of ethics.
like imprisonment or fine or both

Objective Law is created with an intent to Ethics are made to help

maintain social order and peace people to decide what is
in the society and provide right or wrong and how
protection to all the citizens. to act.

Binding Law has a legal binding. Ethics do not have a

binding nature.

Definition of Law

The law is described as the set of rules and regulation, created by the government to govern the
whole society. The law is universally accepted, recognised and enforced. It is created with the
purpose of maintaining social order, peace, justice in the society and to provide protection to the
general public and safeguard their interest. It is made after considering ethical principles and
moral values.

The law is made by the judicial system of the country. Every person in the country is bound to
follow the law. It clearly defines what a person must or must not do. So, in the case of the breach
of law may result in the punishment or penalty or sometimes both.

Definition of Ethics

By ethics, we mean that branch of moral philosophy that guides people about what is good or
bad. It is a collection of fundamental concepts and principles of an ideal human character. The
principles help us in making decisions regarding, what is right or wrong. It informs us about how
to act in a particular situation and make a judgement to make better choices for ourselves.

Ethics are the code of conduct agreed and adopted by the people. It sets a standard of how a
person should live and interact with other people.

Key Differences Between Law and Ethics

The major differences between law and ethics are mentioned below:

The law is defined as the systematic body of rules that governs the whole society and the
actions of its individual members. Ethics means the science of a standard human conduct.

The law consists of a set of rules and regulations, whereas Ethics comprises of guidelines
and principles that inform people about how to live or how to behave in a particular
situation.

The law is created by the Government, which may be local, regional, national or
international. On the other hand, ethics are governed by an individual, legal or
professional norms, i.e. workplace ethics, environmental ethics and so on.

The law is expressed in the constitution in a written form. As opposed to ethics, it cannot
be found in writing form.

The breach of law may result in punishment or penalty, or both which is not in the case of
breach of ethics.
 The objective of the law is to maintain social order and peace within the nation and
protection to all the citizens. Unlike, ethics that are the code of conduct that helps a
person to decide what is right or wrong and how to act.

The law creates a legal binding, but ethics has no such binding on the people.

Ethics and Morals

There is always an ambiguity when we talk about Morals and Ethics because
their difference is subtle. Perhaps, these two defines a personality, attitude
and behavior of a person. The word Morals is derived from a Greek word
Mos which means custom. On the other hand, if we talk about Ethics, it is
also derived from a Greek word Ethios which means character. Now lets
start learning the difference between Morals and Ethics.

BASIS FOR
COMPARISON MORALS ETHICS

Meaning Morals are the beliefs of the Ethics are the guiding
individual or group as to principles which help the
what is right or wrong. individual or group to
decide what is good or
bad.
Governed BySocial and cultural norms Individual or Legal and
Professional norms

Applicability in No Yes
Business
Consistency Morals may differ from Ethics are generally
society to society and culture uniform
to culture.
Expression Morals are expressed in the Ethics are abstract.
form of general rules and
statements.

Freedom to think No Yes

and choose
Definition of Morals

Morals are the social, cultural and religious beliefs or values of an individual
or group which tells us what is right or wrong. They are the rules and
standards made by the society or culture which is to be followed by us while
deciding what is right. Some examples of Morals are:

Do not cheat

Be loyal

Be patient

Always tell the truth

Be generous

Morals refer to the beliefs what is not objectively right, but what is
considered right for any situation, so it can be said that what is morally
correct may not be objectively correct.

Definition of Ethics

Ethics is a branch of philosophy that deals with the principles of conduct of

an individual or group. It works as a guiding principle as to decide what is
good or bad. They are the standards which govern the life of a person. Ethics
is also known as moral philosophy. Some examples of Ethics are:

Truthfulness

Honesty

Loyalty

Respect

Fairness

Integrity
Key Differences Between Morals and Ethics

The major differences between Morals and Ethics are as under:

Morals deal with what is right or wrong. Ethics deals with what is good or
evil.

Morals are dictated by society, culture or religion while Ethics are chosen by
the person himself which governs his life.

As morals are framed and designed by the group, there is no option to think
and choose; the individual can either accept or reject. Conversely, the people
are free to think and choose the principles of his life in ethics.

Morals may vary from society to society and culture to culture. As opposed to
Ethics, which remains same regardless of any culture, religion or society.

Morals do not have any applicability to business, whereas Ethics is widely

applicable in the business known as business ethics.

Morals are expressed in the form of statements, but Ethics are not expressed
in the form of statements.

Examples

If the son of a big politician has committed a crime and he uses his powers to
free his son from legal consequences. Then this act is immoral because the
politician is trying to save a culprit.

A very close friend or relative of an interviewer comes for an interview and

without asking a single question, he selects him. This act is unethical
because the selection process must be transparent and unbiased.

A grocer sells adulterated products to his customers to earn more profit. This
act is neither moral nor ethical because he is cheating his customers and
profession at the same time.
Values

Human values are the principles, standards, convictions and beliefs that
people adopt as their guidelines in daily activities. Principal human values
are the foundation on which professional ethics are built. They are a set of
consistent measures and behaviors that individuals choose to practice in the
pursuit of doing what is right or what is expected of them by society. Most
laws and legislation are shaped by human values.

Human values are passed by parents to their offspring soon after childbirth
and are instilled throughout the children's upbringing. As they grow, children
learn more values from their peers, religious leaders, teachers, friends and
society at large. These attributes include honesty, trustworthiness, diligence,
discipline, fairness, love, peace, justice, care for one another and being
mindful of the environment, including plants and animals. In addition,
selflessness and putting the well-being of all before a person's own needs are
desirable human values. Generally, human values are highly encouraged in
society, while negative attributes are discouraged and condemned. These
values are passed from one generation to another. People with excellent
human values are usually held in high esteem, admired and rewarded. The
traits are important especially in leaders and people in influential positions.
All cultures and societies encourage teachers, doctors, lawyers, politicians,
businesspeople and other professionals to have strong human values.
Norms

1. Informal guideline about what is considered normal (what is correct or

incorrect) social behavior in a particular group or social unit. Norms form the
basis of collective expectations that members of a community have from
each other, and play a key part in social control and social order by exerting
a pressure on the individual to conform. In short, "The way we do things
around here."

2. Formal rule or standard laid down by legal, religious, or social authority

against which appropriateness (what is right or wrong) of an individual's
behavior is judged.

Beliefs

Assumptions and convictions that are held to be true, by an individual or a

group, regarding concepts, events, people, and things.

Culture
Culture is the man made part of the environment which provides a comprehensive frame work
for understanding the way of life of a person, his beliefs, values, norms, behavior etc. Culture is
one of those terms that are difficult to express clearly, but everyone knows it when they sense it.
Our behavior is driven by three forces:
1. Human Nature: this is inherited and universally shared across all human cultures
2. Culture: Our collective programming which is learned, not inherited
3. Personality: Personality is the additional unique set of mental programme not shared with
other human beings. It is partly inherited and partly learned.

Organization culture is the [personality ogf the organization. Culture is

comprised of the assumptions, values, norms and tangible signs of
organizations members and their behaviors.

Kinds of Cultures
1. Strong Culture: in strong culture, the conceptual principles or values are translated
very directly into peoples day to day lives. For example, the military has a definite set of
values and very strong culture. They are enforced through external rules and regulations
as well as internal education.
2. Weak Culture: some have a set of generally accepted conceptual values, yet these do
not really translate to daily life. For example, religious values in western countries.
Values
The word value is derived from French word valoir which means worth, merit,
usefulness or importance of a thing. Values are traits or qualities that are considered
valuable. They represent an individuals highest priorities and deeply held driving forces.
A broad definition of values, derived from an insight into ancient Indias psycho
philosophical wisdom literature is Values are states of feelings/emotions that underpin
the content of a choice/decision and determine the manner of using the intellect/reason
for justifying and implementing that choice/decision.
The study of values is fundamental in managing an organizations behavior.

Characteristics of Values

1. Values represent an individuals highest priorities and deeply held driving forces
2. Values are the hub of personality and is powerful force affecting behavior
3. Value varies according to time
4. Many values are relatively constant and durable
5. It contains a judgment element
6. Everyone does not hold the same values