Grand Canyon Skywalk: Views of Law and Ethics

The intersection of law and ethics provides students with a view of how people are expected to conduct themselves legally and how that conduct also should meet ethical standards, although legal and ethical behavior may or may not be synonymous. The story of the development and operation of the Grand Canyon Skywalk is a tale of dreams, schemes, and the legal system, but, most importantly, it is a tale of how people behave and how that behavior raises questions of ethics regardless of the legal outcomes. This teaching case provides students an opportunity to engage in active learning, to interact with their classmates, to learn the importance of gathering information before making decisions, as well as the chance to look at the story of the Skywalk from different perspectives and appreciate the important role that perspective plays in determining the ethical nature of conduct. Questions about sovereign immunity, eminent domain, trespass, easements, arbitration, defamation, trademark, and contracts--the story of the Skywalk has it all.