Module Identifier LA35310  
Module Title BUSINESS LAW 1  
Academic Year 2001/2002  
Co-ordinator Mr David Poyton  
Semester Semester 1  
Other staff Mr Brian Jack, Mr Daryl Fletcher, Mr Neil Kibble  
Mutually Exclusive LA10420, LA15830, LA30420, LA33020, LA35830  
Course delivery Lecture   20 Hours two one hour lectures per week  
  Seminar   4 Hours four one hour seminars  
Assessment Essay   one assessed essay of 2000 words required in week 9   33%  
  Exam   2 Hours   66%  
  Resit assessment   Resit by retaking the failed element    
Professional Exemptions Not Available to Law Students  

Module description


This Module is not available to Law Students


Business Law 1 affords non-law students the opportunity to study legal topics, the significance of which play an important part in the business world. Business Law 1 is designed for the business student and assumes no previous study of the law. The course is designed to meet the needs of students who wish to obtain an appreciation of and insights into the law relating to business relationships. This course predominately concentrates its attention on the effectiveness and the operation of principles of contract law, principles which are essential to business transactions. It also covers essential knowledge and skills in understanding the legal system and the basics of negligence in tort law in a business context. The course approaches the study and understanding of the law at a level which is appropriate for non-law students. Time is given in the lectures to explain the fundamental characteristics and workings of the English legal system. Completion of the course will enable students to attain a fundamental understanding of the rules which operate to regulate business transactions.

Aims of the module


The aims of this module are first to introduce students of business and related studies to the main features of the legal environment within which commercial activity takes place, and secondly (and more specifically) to undertake a detailed examination of the law of contract as the basis for business dealings.

Module objectives / Learning outcomes


Upon the successful completion of this module, students will (a) have a working understanding of the principal features of the English legal system, (b) an understanding of the main features of the English law of contract, (c) be able to recognise the need to obtain appropriate legal advice at various stages in the course of the contract, and (d) have a broad appreciation of the role of contracts in the conduct of commercial activity.

Syllabus


Syllabus:


1. Lectures 1-5: Legal System


Essential Knowledge and Skills
The general principles upon which the law is based.
The sources and historical development of the law.
The court structure in which the law is administered.


2. Lectures 6-7: Tort law and Negligence


The basic concepts of negligence in a business context.


3. Contract lectures begin at lecture seven and stop at the last lecture, lecture twenty. The tentative schedule of lectures is as follows:


a. The Essential Requirements of a Valid Contract 1: Introduction and Overview; the Requirements for a Contract
b. The Essential Requirements of a Valid Contract 2: Offer and Acceptance
c. Offer and Acceptance - continued
d. The Essential Requirements of a Valid Contract 3: Consideration
e. Consideration - continued
f. The Essential Requirements of a Valid Contract 4: Intention to Create Legal Relations
g. Discharge 1:
h. Discharge 2:
i. Remedies 1:
j. Remedies 2:
k. Mistakes l.
l. Mistakes 2
m. Misrepresentation
n. Restraint of Trade

  1. We reserve the right to alter the lecture schedule**

Reading Lists

Books
** Recommended Text
Lawrence Koffman & Elizabeth MacDonald. (1998) The Law of Contract. 3rd. Butterworths Tolley
David Kelly & Ann Holmes. (2000) Principles of Business Law. 3rd. Cavendish
Ewan McKendrick. (1997) Contract Law. 3rd. MacMillan
T A Downes. (1997) Textbook on Contract. 5th. Blackstone
Robert Upex. (1999) Davies on Contract. 8th. Sweet & Maxwell
Halson. (2001) Contract Law. Longman
Keenan. (2000) Advanced Business Law. Longman