OVER tile past two years, stories of questionable—at times criminal—business activity have dominated the business press: Cendant’s creative earnings, Archer Daniels Midland’s price-fixing, Bankers Trust’s leveraged derivatives and use of customer funds, and Long-Term Capital’s high-risk bets with others’ funds, to name a few. Rite-Aid and Wal-Mart have been profiled for their peculiar charge-back policies that leave their suppliers confused and temporarily or permanently underpaid. Sears Roebuck’s disregard for bankruptcy laws, debtors’ rights, and creditor priorities led to a $63 million fine—the largest in the history of U.S. bankruptcy law.