Course Overview
This course is designed to provide students with the knowledge of some of the vital legal concepts that affect commerce and trade. First, they will gain some familiarity with how laws are created and interpreted. Then, they will be introduced to the types of businesses that can be created to engage in commerce as well as the contractual and liability considerations that can impact a business. Laws that affect how a business is regulated will also be reviewed, particularly the impact of administrative rules and regulations on a business.
As the students work through matters of law and business, they will also consider scriptural principles.
Global commerce and international agreements, treaties, organizations, and courts that can affect business will be discussed to get a better sense of what it means to “go global” with a business. This global emphasis will also survey what is prophesied in the Bible about buying and selling in the last days.
Consumer and environmental protections will be explained as well as bankruptcy options, should a business go insolvent. In particular, students will look at what the Bible has to say about the ethics of bankruptcy. Lastly, no business exists without experiencing some kind of dispute or another, and so we will review the options that exist for dispute resolution and alternative dispute resolution to provide a better understanding of how best to deal with such matters.
Objectives
- Develop a general overview of the legal system in the United States.
- Understand the types of businesses and corporations that exist.
- Develop insight into the formation of contracts.
- Learn about torts and liability considerations regarding torts.
- Develop an understanding of ethics and civil and criminal procedures.
- Develop an appreciation of the administrative law process along with the Commerce Clause and its effect on employment law.
- Comprehend the information about intellectual property law and e-commerce.
- Understand the global picture of international agreements and sources of international law, international trade, the UN and key organs and commissions, and the international courts created by treaties.
- Gain insight into consumer, environmental, and bankruptcy laws that can affect an individual and his or her business.
- Learn how to resolve disputes that may arise in the transaction of business through traditional or alternative means.
Course Requirements
While there are no formal requirements for this course, it is important to understand that this is a challenging course requiring your best critical-thinking skills. The ability to conduct research, make lateral connections, and consider options not clearly outlined is a function of those who successfully practice the law. This course uses scenarios and case studies to apply the concepts offered and encourage creative thinking within the confines of the legal and ethical parameters. For the Christian student who is considering a career in the law, this course is a good primer.
Unit 1: ROLE OF LAW AND ITS IMPACT ON BUSINESS
- CHAPTER 1: SOURCES OF LAW AND THE BILL OF RIGHTS
- Law Sources: The Legislative and the Executive Branches
- Law Sources: The Constitution and the Judicial Branch
- The Bill of Rights and Fundamental Guarantees
- Project: Drafting a Bill
- Project: A Supreme Court Case
- Project: A Comparison of Human Rights Bills
- CHAPTER 2: CORPORATIONS
- Sole Proprietorships and Agency
- Partnerships
- Corporations
- Project: Starting a Business
- Project: Partnerships
- Project: Understanding the Tender Offer
UNIT 2: LEGAL CONSIDERATIONS IN BUSINESS LAW
- CHAPTER 1: CONTRACTS
- Contracts: Basic Elements of Contracts
- Contracts: Uniform Commercial Code
- Contract Defenses
- Project: Identifying Internet Agreements
- Project: Buyers, Sellers, and Warranties
- Project: Defensible Defenses
- CHAPTER 2: TORTS
- Torts: Intentional Torts
- Torts: Negligence
- Torts: Strict Liability and Nuisance
- Project: Review the Lemonade Stand Fact Pattern
- Project: Lulu the Runaway Dog
- Project: You be the Author — Write Your Own Newspaper Articles
UNIT 3: REGULATING A BUSINESS
- CHAPTER 1: ETHICS AND THE LAW — CRIMINAL AND CIVIL PROCEDURE
- Ethics and the Law: Crimes Against Persons
- Ethics and the Law: Crimes Against Property
- Criminal Procedure
- Project: Know Your State’s Penal or Criminal Code and Create Your Own Law
- Project: Know Your White Collar Crimes
- Project: Create Your Own Crime
- CHAPTER 2: ADMINISTRATIVE LAW, THE COMMERCE CLAUSE, AND EMPLOYMENT LAW
- Introduction to Administrative Law
- Administrative Law and Adjudication
- Employment, Regulation and Discrimination in the Workplace
- Project: Federal Agencies and Their Functions
- Project: News Stories on Federal Agencies
- Project: Prepare Scenarios Using Gidgets Galore
UNIT 4: GLOBAL COMMERCE
- CHAPTER 1: INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY AND E-COMMERCE
- Intro to Intellectual Property: Patents
- Intro to Intellectual Property: Trademarks and Copyrights
- Electronic Commerce
- Project: Developing a Patent
- Project: Applying for a Trademark
- Project: Privacy Issues
- CHAPTER 2: GLOBALIZATION AND INTERNATIONAL LAW
- Sources of International Law
- International Trade, GATT, and the WTO
- Governmental Systems of the United Nations
- Project: Look Up a Treaty
- Project: International Courts and Adjudication
UNIT 5: PROTECTIONS AND RESOLUTIONS
- CHAPTER 1: CONSUMER LAW, ENVIRONMENTAL LAW, AND BANKRUPTCY LAW
- Consumer Law
- Environmental Law
- Business Protection — Bankruptcy
- Project: Consumer Protection in Action
- Project: Global Issues: The Future We Want?
- Project: Bankrupt Your Business
- CHAPTER 2: DISPUTE RESOLUTION AND ALTERNATIVE DISPUTE RESOLUTION
- Dispute Resolution
- Alternative Dispute Resolution
- Career Opportunities in Business Law
- Project: Create a Business Dispute, and Resolve It
- Project: Constructing a Dispute, Arbitration, and Resolution
- Project: Career Assessment
Course Project: Business Law E-Portfolio
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