It is fair to say that philosophy is the basis of all law and that the maintenance of ethics in society is the supreme tenacity of law. However, there is still a lack of clarity about what is ethical and what is not, which is due to the subjectivity of understanding the concept of ethics. The article aims to identify some significant philosophical notions rooted in law and understanding what ethics is through four paths. First, it establishes a relationship between J.S. Mill`s principle of prejudice and the principles of natural law concerning radical freedom and existentialism, thus discouraging the restrictions imposed on the individual by each law. Second, it links Kant`s ideas to the current scenario of formulated laws. Third, he identifies what ethics really is by noting actions, pleasure, pain, and punishment by consequentialism. Fourth, the article aims to create, through ethics and philosophy, a solution to the various conflicts of ideas in law observed in the global world and to propose an ideal society. Kidder calls this a “right vs. right” dilemma.

When evaluating alternatives, both policy options have both positive and negative elements. Good versus good is an ethical dilemma, while good versus evil is identified as a moral temptation (Kidder, 1996). Such guidelines can certainly be useful in establishing a code of conduct and often setting the standard for the application of disciplinary responsibility; However, they do not necessarily provide an ethical basis for decisions that a lawyer may make in the course of his professional activity. This article does not focus on issues of incompatibility or conflict of interest which, although they sometimes lead to very sensitive and confusing issues, can nevertheless be dealt with within the framework of well-established professional rules. In day-to-day practice, the main ethical challenges facing legal practitioners are their approach to the case, the client and the client`s goals and, of course, the actions they take to achieve those goals. Moral conscience is a precursor to the elaboration of legal rules for social order. The Affordable Care Act is an example of a series of laws that have been developed with a number of ethical issues in mind. Due to pre-existing conditions or simple unavailability, tens of millions of people have not been able to purchase health insurance at all costs. The law corrects this injustice by requiring most U.S. citizens and permanent residents to purchase health insurance (Lachman, 2012). The law also addresses insurance choices and costs and introduces certain rights and protections for consumers. Another confidentiality issue may arise in a high-profile case when an organization`s lawyer provides legal advice to individual agents of the organization.

In another case stemming from the Sandusky scandal, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruled earlier this year that individual agents, not Penn State, had privilege and that the university`s in-house attorney should not have disclosed individuals` testimony to the grand jury. The Supreme Court eventually disciplined Penn State`s lawyer and the prosecutor who provoked the confidential statements. (Few, if any, participants in the Sandusky case appeared to escape unscathed.) Guidelines for ethical practices have been in place since the beginning of nursing. An ethical promise for nurses – a modified version of the Hippocratic Oath called the Nightingale Pledge – was developed by Lystra Gretter in 1893. The first code of ethics for nurses was proposed by the American Nurses Association in 1926 and adopted in 1950 (Lyons, 2011). Ethical dilemmas arise when there are equally compelling reasons for and against a certain course of action and a decision must be made. It is a dilemma because there is a conflict between decisions. Usually, an action, while morally right, violates another ethical norm.

A classic example is stealing to feed your family. Theft is legally and ethically reprehensible, but if your family starves, it may be morally justified (Noel-Weiss et al., 2012). State codes of professional conduct provide specific guidelines on how lawyers should manage clients` finances, and proper management of clients` funds is not always obvious. If a client deposits into a lawyer`s escrow account or if a lawyer is required to hold settlement funds for a client, that money cannot be used for anything else. Lawyers are generally prohibited from mixing their business assets with their clients` money.