Legal Environment of Business
University of Texas/MBA
Summer 2008
Objective: This course is intended to
help students develop: (1) a basic knowledge of the legal questions that can
arise in the course of doing business, (2) an understanding of the rules and
norms governing the relationship between government (including legislatures,
regulators, and courts) and business; and (3) the analytical skills and
reasoning power to recognize and respond to potential and emerging legal
issues.
Participation: You are expected to have
read the assigned readings before class and be prepared to discuss the cases
when called upon. Class participation
will comprise 20% of your grade. You can
maximize your participation grade by being present at every session, being
prepared (by having done the readings), and contributing to class
discussions.
Exercises: There will be several
in-class exercises, which comprise (collectively) 30% of your grade. Their success as learning tools will depend
upon the amount of effort and creativity you put into the exercise.
Exam: There will be an in-class final exam, which will
comprise 50% of your grade.
May 2
Introduction
to Legal Systems, Sources of Law, and Constitutional Law
Chps. 1 and
4
National Legislature Exercise – link
May 3 (AM)
Criminal
Law and Torts
Chps. 3 and 5
Criminal vs. Civil Liability small group exercise
– Do you agree
with the author that Hanousek should not be
criminally liable? Why or why not? Where or how would you draw the boundary
between criminal and civil liability?
May 16
Contract
Law
Chps. 7-9
Contracts and Risk Exercise – link
May 17 (AM)
Contract
Law
Chps. 10, 11, 14 and 19
May 30
Intellectual
Property (Guest
J. Allison)
May 31 (AM)
Employment
Law
Chps. 53 and 54
Employment Discrimination Exercise – link TBA
June 6
Real, Personal and
Intellectual Property (Guest: C.
Meakin)
Chps.
34-37 and Chapter 59(excluding Patents and Trade
Secrets)
June 7 (AM)
Antitrust Law:
Chps.
50-52
Environmental Law:
Chp. 55
Browse
EPA’s “Plain
English Guide to the Clean Air Act”
Clickable
map of US Superfund sites
(browse)
Superfund
Exercise – link TBA
June 7 (PM)
FINAL EXAM: The
exam will cover all the material in the course, including the material we cover
on the weekend of June 6-7. We will set
aside an hour before the exam for review questions. The exam will take place during the last 3
hours of that 4-hour block. For the exam
you be allowed to bring one 8 1/2” x 11” piece of paper with anything you wish
written on it (both front and back side) in only your own handwriting.
Your full name must be written on one side of the sheet in letters at least this big. The sheet shall be turned in with the exam.