LAW 4870: Business Ethics, Legal Liabilities and Sustainability 1

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1 LAW 4870: Business Ethics, Legal Liability and Sustainability Professor XXXX 3XXX Schneider Hall Haworth College of Business (269) 387-XXXX Required Texts and Casebooks Author: Duska, Duska, and Ragatz Title: Accounting Ethics (2 nd Edition) 2011 ISBN #: Publisher: Wiley-Blackwell Author: Title: 2011 Mintz and Morris Ethical Obligations and Decision Making in Accounting: Text and Cases (2 nd Edition) ISBN #: Publisher: McGraw-Hill Additional readings and cases will be placed on reserve. Course Description This course provides students with an opportunity to examine the ethical, legal and sustainability issues affecting the work of accountants and other business professionals. Students will study concepts and tools for recognizing and analyzing ethical issues in accounting and business; promoting ethical behavior in corporations and institutions; the social and legal responsibilities of accountants and other business professionals; the role of business and accounting in a free market economy; the development of sustainable business practices; the role of accounting, consulting and other business professions in contemporary American society. Student Learning Outcomes/Learning Objectives Upon completion of this course, students should demonstrate a mastery of the following course objectives through various learning media, including exam performance, class participation, research paper preparation, and group case analysis. 1. Analyze legal, social, and economic developments that have defined the ethical expectations for business and accounting professionals. 2. Evaluate ethical relationships between business professionals and major stakeholders to the financial reporting process. 3. Evaluate theoretical models of ethical behavior and apply such models to contemporary accounting and business issues. 4. Analyze and evaluate the effectiveness of professional codes of ethics embraced by the accounting, auditing and other business professions. LAW 4870: Business Ethics, Legal Liabilities and Sustainability 1

2 5. Identify dynamic factors that have historically impacted the ethical behavior of accounting and business professionals. Such factors include sustainability, emerging technologies, regulatory activities, and international accounting standard-setting. 6. Perform rigorous academic research to investigate the timely issues related to accounting ethics, including earnings management and fraud, internal control and corporate governance, and the development of an ethical framework for use in setting appropriate standards of conduct for stakeholders. Assignments Class Participation (100 points): This class will be interactive and conducted in a seminar style. The objective is to conduct class in a manner that stimulates interesting discussions about ethics and related topics. Since research indicates that adults learn most effectively in a participative setting, some of our class time will consist of discussing cases in your assigned groups and group homework assignments. To motivate discussion and preparation, a portion of your grade is based upon class participation. The class participation portion of your grade will be based on a number of factors including attendance, professionalism, and the quality and quantity of your contributions to class discussions and group problems. It is your responsibility to read the assigned material before coming to class and to be prepared to discuss any assigned case or end of chapter questions in class. If you have not read this material you will have difficulty following the class discussion. Your reading and related preparation is a key factor in your performance/participation in this class, and how much knowledge you will obtain from this class. Your participation in class will enable me to assess both your class preparation and your oral communication skills. In the practice of accounting, the importance of these skills is often revealed in consultations with clients, regulatory agencies, and colleagues during which you will be required to explain complex ideas clearly and concisely. Group Presentations 100 points: 6 to 8 group cases will be assigned from the Mintz textbook or other sources for presentation during the last two weeks of class. A written case analysis will be submitted by each group, while groups alternate in their responsibility to moderate a debate-style analysis of each case. Midterm (100 points) and Final Exams (100 points): Exams will address the content of the assigned readings for this course. Students will be expected to identify the nature and extent of ethical dilemmas, parties that are affected, strengths and weaknesses of alternatives to the chosen course of action, and well-reasoned solutions to the crisis created by the ethical dilemma. Grading Scale 100%-95=A 94-90=BA 89-85=B 84-80=CB 79-75=C 74-70=DC 69-65=D 64-00=E LAW 4870: Business Ethics, Legal Liabilities and Sustainability 2

3 Week Readings and Cases Academic Honesty You are responsible for making yourself aware of and understanding the policies and procedures in the Undergraduate and Graduate Catalogs that pertain to Academic Honesty. These policies include cheating, fabrication, falsification and forgery, multiple submission, plagiarism, complicity and computer misuse. [The policies can be found at under Academic Policies, Student Rights and Responsibilities.] If there is reason to believe you have been involved in academic dishonesty, you will be referred to the Office of Student Conduct. You will be given the opportunity to review the charge(s). If you believe you are not responsible, you will have the opportunity for a hearing. You should consult with me if you are uncertain about an issue of academic honesty prior to the submission of an assignment or test. (The Code of Honor passed by the Faculty Senate in November 2004 and administration in December 2004, can also be found at LAW 4870: Business Ethics, Legal Liabilities and Sustainability 3

4 1 Introduction, Overview and Background Duska, pp Ethical Behavior in Accounting and Business: What Is Ethical? 3 Ethical Behavior in Accounting and Business: Ethical Theory. Duska, pp Mintz, Chapter 1 Duska, pp Mintz, Chapter 2 4 Characteristics of a Profession Duska, pp Professional Codes of Conduct Duska, pp Mintz, Chapter 4 6 The Rules of the Code of Conduct Duska, pp Mintz, Chapter 4 7 Midterm 8 External Stakeholders: The Auditing Function Duska, pp Mintz, Chapter 5 9 Internal Stakeholders: The Ethics of Managerial Accounting Duska, pp Mintz, Chapter 7 Krueze, J. and Ruhl, J. Grey Paints. Issues in Accounting Education 10 Legal Compliance: The Ethics of Tax Accounting Duska, pp Mintz, Chapter 6 11 Corporate Governance: Ethics Applied to the Accounting Firm Duska, pp Mintz, Chapter 3 12 Sustainability and Other Current Debates Duska, pp Mintz, Chapter 8 Knapp, M. and Knapp, C., Europe s Enron, Issues in Accounting Education 13 Group Presentations 14 Group Presentations Finals Week Final Exam Final Exam LAW 4870: Business Ethics, Legal Liabilities and Sustainability 4

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