I. General Information

1. Course Title:
Legal Environment of Business

2. Course Prefix & Number:
BUSN 2130

3. Course Credits and Contact Hours:

Credits: 3

Lecture Hours: 3

Lab Hours: 0

4. Course Description:

This course is a study of the political and legal framework within which American businesses operate. Topics include the nature and formation of law and its application to business, constitutional, administrative, criminal, and international laws, contracts, torts, product liability, cyber law, bankruptcy, consumer protection, environment, real property, business organization, and employee relations.

5. Placement Tests Required:

6. Prerequisite Courses:

There are no prerequisites for this course.

9. Co-requisite Courses:

There are no corequisites for this course.

II. Transfer and Articulation

1. Course Equivalency - similar course from other regional institutions:

Northland Community College, BUSN 2218 Legal Environment of Business, 3 credits
MN State, ACCT 1120 Business Law, 3 credits

3. Prior Learning - the following prior learning methods are acceptable for this course:
CLEP

III. Course Purpose

1. Program-Applicable Courses – This course is required for the following program(s):

Business Management, AAS
Accounting, AAS and Diploma

IV. Learning Outcomes

1. College-Wide Outcomes

College-Wide Outcomes/Competencies	Students will be able to:
Demonstrate written communication skills	Prepare a written response to chapter questions about the law; prepare short reports.
Demonstrate reading and listening skills	Read, interpret, and apply concepts introduced in the textbook.
Apply ethical principles in decision-making	Provide examples of responses to ethical issues by business firms, educational institutions, governments, and trade and professional organizations.

2. Course Specific Outcomes - Students will be able to achieve the following measurable goals upon completion of the course:

• Understand the main elements of the American legal system and how it functions within the federal system of government;
• Understand the rights and limitations found in the Constitution;
• Understand the main sources of legal authority, which may include constitutions, treaties, statutes, cases, regulations and decrees;
• Understand and apply legal terminology in an appropriate context;
• Understand and apply the fundamentals of legal reasoning;
• Understand legal situations which impact businesses, which may include criminal law, civil law, contracts, torts, business organizations, intellectual property, employment law, the legal and regulatory environment of business (local, national and global), Uniform Commercial Code, and alternative forms of dispute resolution;
• Analyze fact patterns to identify legal issues and their impact on associated stakeholders;
• Analyze legal issues through the application of primary and secondary sources of law;
• Understand the functions of courts and other non-judicial tribunals in the resolution of disputes;
• Understand the philosophies of law and the resolution of ethical dilemmas;
• Analyze and defend alternative outcomes in legal cases through oral and written communication;
• Understand and apply the use of legal and business data bases; and
• Understand the global and culturally diverse context in which business and business law functions.

V. Topical Outline

Listed below are major areas of content typically covered in this course.

1. Lecture Sessions

1. Introduction to Law
• System of law
• Ethics
• Criminal law
• Tort law
• Administrative law
2. Contracts
• Offer and acceptance
• Mutual agreement
• Consideration
• Competent parties
• Legal purpose
• Form
• Operation
• Discharge
3. Sales, Agency, and Business Organizations
• Transfer of title
• Sales
• Warranties
• Agency
• Business organizations
4. Commercial Paper
• Introduction
• Transfer and discharge
5. Property
• Real and personal
• Bailments
• Landlord-tenant relations
• Wills, intestacy, and trusts
6. Business and Technology
• Intellectual property
• Computer privacy and speech,
• Conducting business in cyberspace
7. Legal Environment of Business
• Employer-employee relationship
• Employment law
• Product liability
• Professional's liability
• International business law environment