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Document Type

Book Chapter

Publication Date

2020

Publication Information

Published as a chapter in Corporate Social Responsibility – Sustainable Business : Environmental, Social and Governance Frameworks for the 21st Century edited by Rae Lindsay and Roger Martella.

Abstract

This chapter provides perspectives on the balance of professional and personal ethical considerations that lawyers must achieve to deal effectively and ethically with the conundrums they face in their representation of business clients. This task requires consideration of both issues that some might regard as isolated (or at least mundane and local) and, at the same time, issues that are global and existential—critical to the survival of our species. Although the focus is on the role of lawyers, the challenges con- fronted by lawyers and the rules governing their conduct also inform the ethical responsibilities and role of nonlawyers.

The chapter is designed to illuminate both the opportunities and challenges for lawyers practicing in this complex space. For clients committed to CSR, a lawyer’s skill and experience in examining the structure, governance, operations, and other activities of business firms and identifying influences on a business firm’s legal compliance and risk management can have a profoundly beneficial effect in meeting the goals of CSR. Lawyers are a formidable force, and a potential guiding light, in navigating the legal and ethical constructs that tie businesses, through CSR, to meaningful social and environmental change at a critical juncture in world history.

ISBN

9789403522227

Publisher

Kluwer Law International

Keywords

law, corporate law, ethics and professional responsibility

Disciplines

Business Organizations Law | Law | Legal Ethics and Professional Responsibility

Ethical Considerations: Corporate Social Responsibility and the 21st Century

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