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Legislated Ethics: From Enron to Sarbanes-Oxley, the Impact on Corporate America

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Abstract

This paper explores the financial reporting scandals of the past decade and the resulting U.S. legislative attempts to impose ethical behavior and control the incidence of new reporting problems via the Sarbanes-Oxley legislation. We begin with a brief historical perspective followed by assertions of ethical consequences of legislation with discussions of key recent corporate scandals, the motives for the frauds, and the consequences. Ethics related provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act are discussed with the potential impact of the legislation on the likelihood of similar future frauds and accompanying prognosis for future corporate ethical behavior.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Professor of Accounting, University of North Carolina – Wilmington, 601 S. College Road, Wilmington, NC, U.S.A., 20493

    Howard Rockness

  2. Cameron Professor of Accounting, University of North Carolina – Wilmington, 601 S. College Road, Wilmington, NC, U.S.A., 20493

    Joanne Rockness

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  1. Howard Rockness
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Correspondence to Howard Rockness.

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Rockness, H., Rockness, J. Legislated Ethics: From Enron to Sarbanes-Oxley, the Impact on Corporate America. J Bus Ethics 57, 31–54 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-004-3819-0

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