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Faculty
Rachel Kowal, New York University

Course Coordinator
ISUP Secretariat

Prerequisite/progression of the course

This class is open to all graduate students. Previous legal studies are not necessary.

Course content, structure and teaching

To succeed, business managers and entrepreneurs need to know how to operate in the legal and global environment of business. This course provides a basic understanding of legal issues that a business manager may face and opportunities to communicate about law and business. The relationship between law and business will be illustrated in class lectures, discussions and selected readings. The objective of the course is to expose students to some of the key legal dilemmas they can expect to encounter in business as entrepreneurs, managers and consultants. The course will focus on American laws and cases. Key differences between U.S. laws and laws applied in the European Union and other countries will be discussed to provide an understanding of the international legal environment and the global nature of business transactions.

Topics covered will include:

• Courts, Sources of Law & Dispute Resolution
• International Law & Transactions
• Contracts
• Employment Law & Discrimination
• Torts & Product Liability
• Intellectual Property
• Agency Law
• Business Organizations
• Securities Laws & Insider Trading
• Criminal Law

The course's development of personal competences

At the end of this course students should be able to:

• Understand the workings of the American legal system and how it differs from the legal systems in other countries.
• Read and analyze legal cases – including the approaches taken by both the majority and dissenting judicial opinions.
• Present a case analysis in written form (case method).
• Foresee the legal implications that arise when managers make business decisions.
• Comprehend the legal consequences that accompany the major types of business organization.
• Apply substantive legal principles to business problems that arise in each topic of study.

Teaching methods

Lectures combined with discussions and classroom exercises illustrating legal principles and cases. Students will be expected to actively participate in class and present news reports pertaining to our topics of study.

Examination

Mandatory mid-term feedback assignment: In order to sit for the final exam each student must give one short presentation on a specific topic pertaining to business law during the course, based on at least 5 academic sources.

Final exam: 4-hour written exam (open book).

Exam aids: Open notes.

Re-take exam: 24-hour written exam.

Recommended literature

Constance E. Bagley & Diane W. Savage, Managers and The Legal Environment: Strategies for the 21st Century, South-Western Cengage Learning, 6th Edition 2009.

The textbook will be supplemented with additional news articles and cases.

Last updated by ISUP Secretariat 29/01/2010