Business Law Report: Code of Ethics, FCPA, and UK Bribery Act

This report addresses the critical role of a code of ethics within a company, emphasizing its importance in regulating employee behavior and upholding the company's reputation. It begins by outlining the necessity of ethical guidelines to ensure employees act responsibly and honestly, covering aspects like integrity, competence, and avoiding conflicts of interest, bribery, and substance abuse. The report then delves into the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) and the UK Bribery Act, highlighting their roles in preventing corruption and bribery, and the responsibilities they place on organizations. Finally, it relates these principles to the local laws of Hawaii, providing a comprehensive view of ethical conduct in a business context. The conclusion reinforces the significance of a well-defined code of conduct in shaping a company's ethical standards and maintaining its positive image.

Running head: BUSINESS LAW
BUSINESS LAW
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

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Introduction
Code of Ethics are considered to be an integral part of a company or an organization
since it gives certain rules and guidelines which helps the employees of a company or an
organization to maintain a certain decorum and to follow the rules and regulations which have
been laid down for them in an ethical manner. Therefore, it is important for a company to have a
code of ethics drafted which would help the employees behave in a certain manner1.
This paper tries to draft a code of ethics for a company and it also discusses the FCPA
along with the UK Bribery Act and apply those with the local law of Hawaii. In conclusion, it
summarizes the several points which have been discussed in the paper.
Discussion
Code of Ethics
It is necessary for a company to have certain rules and regulations which would be laid
down for the employees where they have to abide by those guidelines in order to carry out
activities in an ethical manner. A person or an individual has certain moral obligations in order to
live in a society which helps them to maintain peace and order in the society as their behavior
needs to be regulated. Similarly, in case of a company it is considered to be a separate legal
identity where the members of the company carry out activities on behalf of the company.
Therefore, the behavior of the employees needs to be regulated and controlled since it would
determine the reputation of the company2.
1 Bloch, Kate E., and Roxane Edmond-Dimanche. "The Rule of Law and Ethical Integrity: Does Haiti Need
a Code of Legal Ethics." U. Haw. L. Rev. 37 (2015): 1.
2 SA, Azul Linhas Aéreas Brasileiras. "Code of ethics and conduct." (2015).

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The company believes in the welfare of its employees as well as the effectiveness of the
functioning of the organization. Therefore, certain rules and guidelines are being provided which
would ensure the reputation and the welfare of the company or this organization in order to reach
greater heights.
The ethical conduct of an employee of the company is a significant factor as the behavior
of that employee determines the reputation of the organization. An individual in a company
needs to behave in an ethical manner as it is a crucial part which needs to be followed. Every
company has its own standard and set of rules for ethical conduct which needs to be maintained
and followed by the individuals as they are a part of the company3.
 These rules and regulations should include that a person or an employee needs to behave
in an honest way and work for the betterment of the organization.
 The employee or the individual needs to act truthfully and should not misrepresent or
falsify information acquired or obtained on a company’s behalf.
 An employee of the organization should be able to perform his or her duties and
responsibilities in an ethical and competent manner.
 An employee of the company should not engage in any kind of crimes or offences.
 The employee should not be engaging in any kind of acts which are involving bribery.
 An employee of a company or an organization should not be engaging in any intoxication
which would make the employee perform the duties and responsibilities in an
incompetent manner. The employee should not be under the influence of any drug or any
substance which would render the employee incapable of performing the duties.
3 Kaptein, Muel. "The effectiveness of ethics programs: The role of scope, composition, and
sequence." Journal of Business Ethics 132.2 (2015): 415-431.

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 An employee of the organization should try to help and assist fellow co-workers and
ensure safety of the co-workers and not cause any harm or grievous injury to them.
 An employee of an organization should not engage in any kind of corrupt practices which
would in turn effect the reputation of the organization.
 An employee should always try to ensure safe and healthy environment in the work place
which would help the employees to work in an efficient manner.
These are some of the guidelines which are drafted which would assist the company or the
organization in regulating the ethical behaviors of the employees or the individuals working in
the company. According to the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act it tries to restrict individuals from
taking bribes to foreign officials or engaging in corrupt practices it provides punishment or
indictment of those individuals who have been committing such offences. The Department of
Justice along with the SEC acts as a regulator4.
The UK Bribery Act was introduced or created in order to prevent the individuals from
engaging in taking bribes from foreign officials. It was instituted in order to address the anti-
bribery Convention. This act provides the burden of proof on the corporations or the
organizations to provide information which shows that the companies have taken specific actions
which would prevent them from taking or receiving bribes5.
Therefore, in order to regulate the behaviors of the individuals who are working in a
company or an organization certain guidelines or regulations needs to be followed which would
help them behave in an ethical manner. It is essential because the reputation of a company
4 Brewster, Rachel. "Enforcing the FCPA: International Resonance and Domestic Strategy." Virginia Law
Review (2017): 1611-1682.
5 LeBaron, Genevieve, and Andreas Rühmkorf. "Steering CSR through home state regulation: A
comparison of the impact of the UK bribery act and modern slavery act on global supply chain
governance." Global Policy 8 (2017): 15-28.

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depends on the behavior of the individual or the employee who is working in that company. It is
considered to be a determining factor6.
Conclusion
Therefore, from the above discussion, it can be comprehended or understood that a
company or an organization needs to have a code of conduct which would regulate the behavior
of the employees and try to make them behave in an ethical manner. Therefore, in conclusion it
can be understood that the code of conducts are essential as it determines the reputation of a
company or an organization.
6 Tian, Qing, and Dane K. Peterson. "The effects of ethical pressure and power distance orientation on
unethical pro‐organizational behavior: the case of earnings management." Business Ethics: A European
Review 25.2 (2016): 159-171.

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References
Bloch, Kate E., and Roxane Edmond-Dimanche. "The Rule of Law and Ethical Integrity: Does
Haiti Need a Code of Legal Ethics." U. Haw. L. Rev. 37 (2015): 1.
Brewster, Rachel. "Enforcing the FCPA: International Resonance and Domestic Strategy."
Virginia Law Review (2017): 1611-1682.
Kaptein, Muel. "The effectiveness of ethics programs: The role of scope, composition, and
sequence." Journal of Business Ethics 132.2 (2015): 415-431.
LeBaron, Genevieve, and Andreas Rühmkorf. "Steering CSR through home state regulation: A
comparison of the impact of the UK bribery act and modern slavery act on global supply chain
governance." Global Policy 8 (2017): 15-28.
SA, Azul Linhas Aéreas Brasileiras. "Code of ethics and conduct." (2015).
Security Exchange Commission
Tian, Qing, and Dane K. Peterson. "The effects of ethical pressure and power distance
orientation on unethical pro‐organizational behavior: the case of earnings management."
Business Ethics: A European Review 25.2 (2016): 159-171.