Difference Between Law And Ethics

Decent Essays
There exists a fine line of difference between law and ethics. The law is a systematic set of accepted rules and regulations created by an authority. Ethics, however, describe principles that guide a person or a society. They are created to decide what is good or bad. For some, the two are indistinguishable, but a closer examination shows that they are in fact separate principles. They differ on the following: governing body, expression, violation, objective, and nature. First, Law is universally accepted, recognized, and enforced. The purpose of law is to maintain social order, peace, and justice in society. Law safeguards the interest of the people and is made with ethical and moral decisions. In the United States, we are bound by law, therefore, it defines what is acceptable and what will not be permitted. Breaching this will result in penalties and punishment.
So, what’s the distinction between the two? By nature, ethics comes from a branch of philosophy that guides people about what is good or bad. This is a moral code, not bound by law, but bound to yourself. The ideal human
…show more content…
They both are trying to get people to live a morally sound life. Law and ethics are to maintain a socially peaceful environment while teaching society what is right and what is wrong. They are a set of rules and guidelines for the citizens to follow. Law and Ethics are so cohesive do not contradict one another. They also give you a guideline on which to act on in a specific moment and or manner. In the eyes of the law, every person is equal no matter the race or the color of their skin and that goes the same for Ethics. Both law and Ethics show that nobody is above one another, for that they can not be a superior or inferior being. Therefore, these two guidelines give you the choice on which way you want to live your life and which way you want to coexist with

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    A not so really normal family discovers another method for paying the bills in the comic drama "Fun with Dick and Jane". Dick Harper (Jim Carrey) and his wife, Jane (Téa Leoni), would appear to have it made - Dick has a lucrative occupation, they live in a costly house in suburbia, they have two extravagance autos in the garage, and a maid, Blanca (Gloria Garayua), to help care for their child, Billy. Anyway, Dick and Jane's tall tale life accidents head-on into reality when the firm Dick lives up to expectations for ends up having been utilizing corrupt bookkeeping systems to camouflage the actuality they've been losing cash hand over clench hand, and Dick has been made the fall fellow for some of their messy dealings. All of a sudden level broke, Dick and Jane must locate another approach to bolster their rich way of life, and in time they find simply the thing; crime Ethical issues in Dick and Jane Ethics is about norms of conduct, particularly, concerns toward "great" conduct and thought of how our conduct, as an individual or an association, influences the wellbeing of others or society overall.…

    • 910 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The Birth of HeLa What are your initial thoughts when the word ethics is mentioned? Some ideas that come to mind most likely may be guidelines, rules, behavioral conduct, the difference between what is acceptable or unacceptable, or simply just some type of establishment between what is right and what is wrong. Ethics is defined as the system or code of conduct and morals advocated by a particular individual or group (Towsley-Cook & Young, 2007). In The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, a beautiful, uneducated, African American tobacco farmer developed cervical cancer from which cell samples were taken during her treatment.…

    • 1303 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    Throughout the episode, Stairway to Heaven, the doctors swayed between acting upon their ethics or morals. According to Vermont Ethics Network, ethics are “a set of moral principles, beliefs and values that guide [them] in making choices about medical care.” According to the Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English, morals are “a person’s standards of behavior or beliefs concerning what is and is not acceptable for them to do.” Although ethics and morals seem very similar, there is one important piece that I think makes them totally different. Ethics refer to rules provided by external sources, not by an individual.…

    • 130 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In conclusion, laws exist to protect people from each other and from themselves as well as to increase the amount of money made. Laws protect people from the government; laws let you believe in whatever you want to, from racism and discrimination. Hammurabi laws where the change of the time. Following the laws create a more peaceful society. Laws make you understand the consequences of breaking these…

    • 1116 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    Coker V. Georgia (1977)

    • 2350 Words
    • 10 Pages

    Ethics and Terrorism Investigations Ethics and laws are dependent upon one another. Society knows what is right and what is wrong based on the laws of that community; however, laws are usually defined within narrow parameters. Not every application of the law may be the correct course of action which requires the ethical deliberation of all facts and circumstances to ensure justice is served. The question that needs to be answered in any ethical dilemma is, “Who will be harmed and who will benefit” (Skeen 2015)? According to British Philosophers John Mill and Jeremy Bentham, the answer to the question lies in the Utilitarian Theory that “Actions are right to the degree that they tend to promote the greatest good for the greatest number” (as cited by Kay, n.d.).…

    • 2350 Words
    • 10 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The Moral Quest Summary

    • 551 Words
    • 3 Pages

    As humans we are governed by a code of ethics even though sometimes we fail to acknowledge it. It is this innate reasoning that allows us to decide which road we all take in life; this can be seen as us doing things that are ethical in nature. The word ethics as viewed from a Christian perspective as defined by Grenz is “the study of how humans ought to live as informed by the bible and Christian convictions.” It is with this definition that we seek to understand how human beings should operate. It also allows us to differentiate between ethics and morality.…

    • 551 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Laws are needed to regulate society and protect the natural rights of the people. Laws stop people from impinging on others, affecting their quality of…

    • 1071 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Law was a gift of grace from God to the Israelites, he wanted them to be equipped to live well and pass his word along to younger generations, so that they could continue to validate his covenant. The law was regulatory to the Israelites, but is revelatory to current generations. The Israelites had been living in Egypt where they worshiped false gods, the law he provided was God’s way of guiding them back in the right direction so that they could be in relationship with him. To us, the purpose is to learn about God’s nature and relate to him through that. It is also important to recognize the two most important categories of law.…

    • 997 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    While it is frequently ignored, there is a very important distinction to be made between ethics and morals. Ethics are derived from society and its norms. They differ culturally and with age and are placed on the individual according to the social setting they find themselves in. Breaking ethical code often results in shame from the community. Morals are only reflect beliefs of the individual.…

    • 647 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    Innately humans have greed, as it exists within our system. There are those who can be more selfless than others, however, no one possesses the ability to be solely selfless. In America, some people have the ability to earn powerful jobs in society, assuming and hoping that they will perform what the general population needs. To an extent they do, however they also accomplish what they want as it will benefit them. Due to human nature, a vague document that people can interpret will be construed for a person’s personal reasons, making the document impure.…

    • 199 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Case study of Unethical Public Relation practice Ethics can be described as the branch of philosophy which gives us lesson about what is wrong what is right. It gives us concept about what is wrong and what is right what is injustice. Ethics also gives us lesson about morality. Ethics can be described as well that what way adopted to live and what way we adopt to create relationship with other people of society. As a whole ethics are the whole system of moral values live in this society.…

    • 1025 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    Ethics Midterm Paper

    • 1773 Words
    • 8 Pages

    Jeril Philip PHIL 315 – Midterm paper Part A – Question 2: What is ethics? Divide ethics into the categories we have discussed and define each type. Ethics refers to the standards or principles by which humans ought to behave or conduct themselves generally in society or in specific circumstances. While there are many standards and ways through which one displays the right behavior, ethics is the study of these ways and the theories which guide human action. Ethics has played a significant role in philosophy as philosophers through the ages have either been influenced by ethical theories or have contributed significantly in some way towards understanding how goodness, morality, intrinsic values, and virtues tie into how humans conduct themselves…

    • 1773 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Great Essays

    Introduction Throughout the history of man the question has always come into play regarding how one should behave or conduct themselves during the course of their lives. As a result of this arduous quest, for centuries, several theories have made their way into the hearts and minds of men. Ethics or Moral Philosophy addresses these concerns. The focus of this paper as it relates to ethics will be The Theory of Virtue Ethics.…

    • 1420 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Great Essays

    Utilitarianism V. Pragmatism Over many centuries, ethics helped build the foundation of the laws we abide by today. Ethics are moral principles that control a person’s behavior/actions. Ethics is also known as moral philosophy, which is a branch of philosophy that rises up questions about morality. For instances, questions like is it good or bad, right or wrong, justice or crime.…

    • 1625 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Great Essays

    Ethics is said to be the source of morals; a treatise on this, moral principles, recognized rules of conduct. The Character of a man is expressed in terms of his Conduct. Ethics thus can be considered as the source of character of a person expressed as right or wrong conduct or action. Business Ethics is not a special set of ethical rules different from ethics in general and appropriate only to business.…

    • 1667 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Great Essays

Related Topics