The Legal Environment Opening (1) Clarence Darrows Laws should be created to serve the public (2) Law

- A body of enforceable rules governing relationship among individuals and between individuals and their society. (a) All laws establish rights, duties, and privileges that are consistent with values and beliefs of ruling group. a) Business Activities and the Legal Environment i) Many different laws may affect a single business transaction (1) Breach - The failure to perform a legal obligation. ii) Linking the law to other business school disciplines iii) The role of the law in small business (1) Sources of American Law (a) Primary source of law document that establishes the law on a particular issue, such as the constitution, statute, admin rule, or court decision (i) Statutes laws passed by congress (ii) Admin rule such as U.S. food and drug administration (iii) Court decision case law (b) Secondary source law publication that summarizes or interprets law, such as a legal encyclopedia or article in a law review. iv) Constitutional Law (1) Federal gov and States have separate written constitutions (2) Constitutional law body of law derived from U.S. constitution and constitutions of various states (a) Supreme law of the land (b) If law in violation of the constitution will not be enforced no matter its source (i) 10th amendment all power not granted to fed government will be granted to the states v) Statutory law (1) Statutory law body of law enacted by legislative bodies at any level of government (a) Such as statutes passed by congress or by state legislatures (2) Citation - reference to a publication in which a legal authority, such as statute or court decision, can be found (3) Ordinances regulation enacted by a city or county that becomes part of states statutory law. (a) Example ) zoning, safety codes (b) Local ordinances cant conflict with state. State ordinances cant conflict with Federal.

(4) Uniform Law NCCUSL drafted uniform laws for business men conducting trade in numerous states. They have drafted over 200 uniform acts. States can choose to adopt, reject, or rewrite these laws into their state statute law. (5) The Uniform Commercial Code - Uniform Act, set of rules governing commercial transactions. vi) Administrative Law (1) Administrative law -rules made by federal, state, or local government agencies. vii) Case and Common Law Doctrines (1) Rules of law announced in court decisions constitute another basic source of American Law. (a) Include interpretations of constitutional provisions, statutes enacted by legislature, or regulations created by regulatory agencies. (2) Case Law doctrines and principles announced in cases-governs all areas note covered by statute or admin law. b) The Common Law tradition (1) Much of American law is based on the English Legal system i) Early English Courts (1) Kings courts sought to establish a uniform set of rules for the country as a whole. (2) Common law body of general law that applied throughout the English realm. (a) Created rules from principles underlying actual legal controversies. (b) Legal Precedent court decision that serves as an example for future cases with similar legal issues (i) These decisions were kept in what was called year books ii) Stare Decisis (1) Common law doctrine under which judges are obligated to follow the precedents established in prior decision (a) Decisions made by a higher court are binding to lower courts (2) Binding Authority - source of law that a court must follow when deciding a case. (a) Decision, no matter how old, remain controlling until overruled. (3) Persuasive authorities legal authority that a court may look to for guidance. iii) Equitable Remedies and Courts of Equity (1) Remedy - relief given to an innocent party to enforce a right or to compensate for the violation of the right. (a) Remedies in equity seek to supply a remedy when no adequate remedy at law is available. (2) Plaintiff - One who initiates a lawsuit. (3) Defendant - One against whom a lawsuit is brought (4) Has merged Today (5) Equitable principles and maxims - general propositions or principles of law that have to do with fairness (a) Provide guidance in deciding whether a plaintiff should be granted equitable relief

(6) Procedure Initiation of lawsuit Decision Result Remedy Action at law By filing a complaint By jury or judge Judgment Monetary Action in Equity By filing a petition By judge Decree Injunction, performance, revoke

iv) Schools of legal thought (1) Jurisprudence - study and theory of law (2) Natural Law - Belief that government and the legal system should reflect universal moral and ethical principles. One of the oldest and significant schools of thought (3) Legal positivism School of legal thought centered on the assumption that there are no laws higher than those created by national government. (a) Applies to only citizens of that society (4) Historical School - School of legal thought that emphasizes evolutionary process of law by concentrating on the origin and history of the legal system. (5) Statute of limitation fed or state statute setting the maximum time period which action can be enforced (6) Legal Realism - School of thought that advocates a less abstract and more realistic approach to law. Taking economic realities to a more case by case basis. (7) Sociology School School of legal thought that views the law as a tool for promoting justice in a society. c) Classification of Law i) The law may be broken down into several classification systems (1) Substantive law law that defines, creates, and regulates rights and obligations (2) Procedural law law that establishes methods of enforcing rights established by substantive law. (3) Some divide law into state and federal (4) Cyberlaw conducted via internet, more so a type of law rather than a classification (a) Affected by state and federal ii) Civil law and criminal law (1) Civil law branch spelling out the rights and duties between person and their government (a) Usually private party suing another private party (b) Civil legal system based on written codes of law (2) Criminal Law actions that constitute crimes against society (a) Tried by government, not their victims iii) National and international law (1) National law pertains to particular nation (2) International law governs relations among nations (national law doesnt have jurisdiction)