ABSTRACT
Legal issues are often dif”cult to see as either right or wrong because most things are not simply black or white; there is a broad gray zone in the legal system’s interpretation of laws and regulations. If laws and regulations were always simply yes or no, black or white, true or false, courts, judges, and lawyers would not be needed very often. However, circumstances that could affect the legality or motivation of an action and therefore change the way something is viewed by the legal system usually surround an event. Most often, common sense wins out, and the right thing to do is obvious, but sometimes extra steps should be taken to do what is best for the patient and still do what society expects of us. Society’s opinions are spelled out in a nation’s laws and regulations, and when there is a disagreement, these opinions are interpreted by the courts. Pharmacy personnel have a dual challenge in daily practice in that they must abide by society’s opinion of what is proper conduct by obeying the laws and regulations, and they also must do what is ethically right for the patient’s proper care.
