Lori K. Harris-Ransom, JD, MA

Department of Business Administration

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• TO BUILD UPON THE ANALYTICAL SKILLS DEVELOPED IN BUSINESS LAW 1 (BU 350) BY APPLYING THE RELEVANT PRINCIPALS OF LAW AND ISSUES TO CURRENT EVENTS.

• TO GIVE STUDENTS A BASIC KNOWLEDGE OF THE UNIFORM COMMERCIAL CODE SALES CONTRACTS, COMMERCIAL PAPER, AS WELL AS BUSINESS   ASSOCIATIONS AND THEIR   REGULATION, CONSUMER LAW, AND PROPERTY LAW.

·                    To build on the legal research skills acquired in BU350 by utilizing legal Internet search engines and other law-related web pages including, but not limited to the following:

www.findlaw.com

www.lawcrawler.com

www.abanet.org/lawlink/home.html

http://law.house.gov/uscsrch.htm

COURSE DESCRIPTION:

HAVING ACQUIRED AN UNDERSTANDING OF THE FUNDAMENTAL PRINCIPALS AND SOURCES OF LAW IN THE AMERICAN LEGAL SYSTEM IN BUSINESS LAW I (BU 350), THIS COURSE WILL EXAMINE SPECIFIC BUSINESS RELATED ISSUES IN A LEGAL AND PRACTICAL CONTEXT.  EMPHASIS WILL BE PLACED ON UTILIZING ANALYTICAL SKILLS AND CONSIDERING PUBLIC POLICY AND ETHICAL ISSUES.  THE STUDENT IS REQUIRED TO RELATE CLASSROOM DISCUSSIONS TO CURRENT EVENTS AND IT IS THEREFORE SUGGESTED THAT THE STUDENT READ PERIODICALS, NEWSPAPERS, ETC. TO ACCOMPLISH THIS OBJECTIVE.  THE UNIFORM COMMERICAL CODE WILL BE EXAMINED IN DETAIL, AS WELL AS BUSINESS ASSOCIATIONS AND THEIR REGULATION AND CONSUMER LAW ISSUES.

COURSE REQUIREMENTS AND EVALUATION:

1.  STUDENTS ARE REQUIRED TO COMPILE A WALL STREET JOURNAL PORTFOLIO.  THE PORTFOLIO IS TO CONTAIN CITATIONS TO ARTICLES AND A 1 PAGE, DOUBLE-SPACED WORD PROCESSING TYPED SUMMARY FOR EACH ARTICLE COVERED IN THE COURSE. THE TYPED SUMMARIES ARE TO EXPLAIN THE RELEVANCE OF THE ARTICLE TO THE BUSINESS LAW PRINCIPLE IT IS INTENDED TO ILLUSTRATE. SPECIFICALLY INDICATE TO WHICH CHAPTER THE SUMMARY AND ARTICLE PERTAIN. STUDENTS ARE ENCOURAGED TO USE PERSONAL EXPERIENCES TO SUBSTITUTE FOR ANY ARTICLE.

2.  STUDENTS WILL MAKE AN EXTEMPORANEOUS ORAL ADVOCACY PRESENTATION ON A CASE TO BE PROVIDED BY THE PROFESSOR.

3.  TWO TESTS WILL BE GIVEN.

4.  SEVERAL INTERNET RESEARCH PROJECTS ARE REQUIRED. INCLUDE CORRECT INTERNET CITATION IN ALL ASSIGNMENTS.

5.  ALL ASSIGNMENTS ARE TO BE SUBMITTED THROUGH CONNECTWEB.  LATE ASSIGNMENTS WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED.

6.  Students are required to purchase a $20 license either from the Caldwell College Bookstore or online to use ConnectWeb.

7.  Attendance is required.  Two (2) absences will result in a letter grade reduction.  Students are required to be prepared in advance of the scheduled session.  Class participation and discussion are strongly encouraged.  All of the above may be considered on a case-by-case basis to affect borderline grade situations.  

ACADEMIC MISCONDUCT:

STUDENTS ARE REMINDED THAT ACADEMIC MISCONDUCT AS DEFINED BY THE CALDWELL COLLEGE CATALOGUE INCLUDING ALL FORMS OF ACADEMIC DISHONESTY, ESPECIALLY PLAGIARISM, AND IMPROPER PRACTICES IN CONNECTION WITH EXAMINATIONS WILL BE DEALT WITH IN ACCORDANCE WITH PRESCRIBED COLLEGE POLICY.  IMPROPER CONDUCT INCLUDES, BUT IS NOT LIMITED TO:

1.              COPYING FROM ANOTHER STUDENT ON A TEST, QUIZ, OR HOMEWORK ASSIGNMENT, OR ALLOWING SOMEONE TO COPY FROM YOU;

2.              USING CRIB NOTES ON TESTS OR QUIZZES;

3.              HAVING SOMEONE ELSE DO YOUR WORK FOR YOU,OR DOING SOMEONE ELSE'S WORK FOR HIM/HER;

4.              COPYING A COMPUTER FILE OR DISKETTE FROM ANOTHER STUDENT,ORPERMITTING ANOTHER STUDENT TO COPY FROM YOUR DISKETTE.

ALL FORMS OF CHEATING AND IMPROPER PRACTICE ARE UNACCEPTABLE.  IF YOU ARE CAUGHT CHEATING, OR HELPING SOMEONE ELSE TO CHEAT, YOU WILL AUTOMATICALLY RECEIVE AN "F" FOR THIS COURSE, REGARDLESS OF YOUR CLASS AVERAGE.  ADDITIONALLY, YOU WILL BE REPORTED TO THE ACADEMIC DEAN FOR POSSIBLE FURTHER DISCIPLINARY ACTION.

  CALDWELL COLLEGE

DEPARTMENT OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION

  BUSINESS LAW II BU 355

SYLLABUS

(subject to change)    

Sales, Performance    Chap 19, Chap 20

Sales Lecture Notes      

Title and Risk of Loss Chap 21  

Title and Risk of Loss Lecture Notes   

Products Liabilities, Warranties  Chap 22:

Warranties Lecture Notes  

Assignment: Imagine you recently bought a Cabbage Patch doll for your child and it turned out to be one of those with an insatiable urge to eat children’s hair.  After you give it to your child, it decided to start grazing on her hair.  You want to sue the company, and your first thought is perhaps to sue them based on breach of their express warranty.  The box said it was completely safe for children over 5 years of age, and it clearly was not.  You need to find out what the law says about the liability of a manufacturer who makes a warranty on a product to third parties who are injured by that product.  Using www.findlaw.com find the section of the New Jersey Uniform Commercial Code which applies and explain what your course of action/remedies may be.                                 

Remedies  Chap 23  

Remedies Lecture Notes                      

Commercial Paper   Chap 24, Chap 25, Chap 26, Chap 27           

Banking    Chap 28

Banking Lecture Notes

Assignment:  Obtain a copy of a customer agreement from a bank and compare the provisions of the agreement to the provisions of relevant UCC provisions.  Discuss the obligations of the bank and of the customer.

Assignment:

Find and summarize information about electronic      signatures for e-commerce.  A good place to begin your research is:

       http://profs.findlaw.com/signatures/index.html

You must use other sources and cite properly to all        sources.

Assignment:   Locate the URL for your banking institution.    

Secured Transactions, Bankruptcy  Chap 38, Chap 39 

Internet Assignment:  Using the American Bankruptcy Institute’s site, find (a) the total number of bankruptcy filings, (b) the number of nonbusiness filings according to chapter of the Bankruptcy Code, and (c ) the number of business filings. 

Business Associations-Corporations Chap 34, Chap 35, Chap 36, Chap 37

Assignment: Research and discuss 2 different recent examples of a corporation or corporations “fundamentally changing”.  Identify what change occurred.      

Partnerships, Limited Partners Chap 31, Chap 32, Chap 33 

Internet Assignment:  Locate and email NJ corporation, partnership and limited liability sites.

Team Assignment:  Form a concern by drafting Articles of Incorporation and Bylaws or Articles of Partnership, etc.  Explain the reasons why you chose this particular form to organize your concern.                                    

Internet Assignment:  Using the Security and Exchange Commission’s EDGAR database, find the Annual Report (Form 10-K) of 3 companies and determine (a) the number of inside and outside directors, (b) the compensation for the 3 highest paid officers and their titles.       

Antitrust  Chap 43

Securities Regulation  Chap 40: 

Internet Assignment:  Find the Securities and Exchange Commission Web site and summarize the agency’s (a) structure; (b) functions and (c ) current activities.

Accountants' Legal Liability  Chap 44: 

Internet Assignment:  Find information about the structure and mission of the Financial Accounting Standards Board and summarize.  Also include recent issues being addressed.

Oral Extemporaneous Presentations

Wall Street Journal Portfolio

REQUIRED TEXT/COURSE SUPPORT:  MANN & ROBERTS, BUSINESS LAW AND THE REGULATION OF BUSINESS. 7^TH.  WEST.  2002.  

NORTON CONNECTWEB 

REQUIRED READING:  THE WALL STREET JOURNAL