This text is directed to courses at both the upper-division undergraduate and masters levels in the legal environment of business, government and business, and business and society. Authors of textbooks in these areas often rely on a single discipline (for example, law, economics, or management) as the foundation for their efforts. In this text we take an interdisciplinary approach, using elements of law, political economy, international business,ethics, social responsibility, and management. This large task necessarily requires certain trade-offs, but we hope the product will more accurately capture the fullness of the business environment.

Our primary goal is to produce an interesting, provocative reading experience. Naturally, accuracy and reasonable comprehensiveness cannot be sacrificed. Our feeling, however, is that a law text can be both intellectually and emotionally engaging without sacrificing substantive ends. To meet our objective we have presented the bulk of the book in the form of contemporary legal and ethical conflicts emerging from today’s news. We have provided scholarly results, surveys, polls, data, anecdotes, and other specific details that lend credibility, immediacy, and interest to the reading experience.