TACOMA, Wash. – A new online textbook, co-authored by University of Puget Sound associate professor Lisa Johnson, provides college students with a means to study business law and ethics at little or no cost—and without the risk of their eyes glazing over.

The Legal and Ethical Environment of Business (Flat World Knowledge, January 2011) provides the depth of information the serious student needs, while engaging him or her with video links, multimedia exercises, and real-world case studies in plain English. Free to read online or sold for e-book use at a fraction of the cost of traditional texts, the new book dispenses with unnecessary legal jargon and focuses on what matters to the modern businessperson: the contemporary application of business law.

Lisa Johnson, associate professor in the School of Business and Leadership at Puget Sound, co-authored the peer-reviewed book with Terence Lau, associate professor and director, international business, at University of Dayton’s School of Business Administration. Together, the authors have taught legal environment of business courses to more than 1,600 students over 14 years.

 “We designed our book to appeal to tech-savvy students, while ensuring that the material reflected the academic rigor that this core course demands,” said Johnson.

 Each chapter of the book puts the law in an everyday context by presenting “A Question of Ethics” section that contains ethical dilemmas pulled from the headlines. The textbook is suitable for undergraduate Legal Environment of Business courses, which are typically required at all AACSB-accredited (Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business) business schools. The book can be viewed online or ordered for download via a bookstore on the Flat World Publishing website at: www.flatworldknowledge.com/printed-book/206045. Bound paperback books are also available via the website in black and white ($35) and color ($70), or readers can print a PDF version ($25). Lau and Johnson also maintain a blog at http://legalenvironment.flatworldknowledge.com/

With students spending an average of $1,137 in 2010–11 for textbooks and supplies, according to The College Board, faculty, administrators, publishers, and policymakers are partnering to solve the textbook affordability crisis. More than 1,600 faculty members at 900 colleges have adopted Flat World texts since 2009, ranging from Cornell University to Columbus State Community College to the California State University system.

The authors and Flat World Knowledge will participate in a webcast about the new book on March 21, from 1–2 p.m. Eastern time (4–5 p.m. Pacific time). You can register for the webcast here.  

Lisa Johnson is an associate professor at the University of Puget Sound School of Business and Leadership. She holds a Juris Doctor with a certificate in environmental and natural resources law from the Northwestern School of Law of Lewis and Clark College, a Master of Public Administration in international environmental policy from Indiana University, and a Master of Fine Arts from Pacific Lutheran University. Her bachelor’s degree in history was also earned from Indiana University. She is a Ph.D. candidate at Portland State University, where her dissertation work focuses on the conception of nonhuman animals in western political and legal thought. She is a Fellow at the Oxford Centre for Animal Ethics.

Terence Lau is an associate professor and director, international business at the School of Business Administration, University of Dayton. He served as the 2006 Supreme Court Fellow at the Supreme Court of the United States. Prior to joining the University of Dayton, Lau served as the director of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Governmental Affairs for Ford Asia Pacific operations in Bangkok, Thailand. He earned a bachelor’s degree in political science from Wright State University in 1995 and a Juris Doctor from Syracuse University College of Law in 1998.

Flat World Knowledge, Inc. is the largest publisher of free and open college textbooks for students worldwide. The company provides free online access to complete, peer-reviewed textbooks, with options to purchase affordable print and digital formats, including e-books, audio books, PDF downloads and interactive study aids. Backed by top venture capital firms, Flat World Knowledge was named, along with Apple, Facebook, and Google, as one of the information industry’s "30 to Watch" in 2011 by Outsell, Inc.

To learn more, visit www.flatworldknowledge.com.

Press-quality photos of The Legal and Ethical Environment of Business can be downloaded from: www.pugetsound.edu/pressphotos.xml

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