BUL3320 - Chapter 1

Learning Objectives

Key topics students should be able to define

Law

A body of rules of action or conduct prescribed by controlling authority and having legal binding force

Creates duties

obligations

Business Law

Enforceable set of rules of conduct that govern commercial relationships

Can also be defined as the actions of buyers and sellers in market exchanges and with the surrounding community

Morality

Refers to the ethical code of conduct for a human being

the set of ethical principles that define what is morally right and morally wrong for a particular society at a particular point in time

Law (vs. Morality)

Refers to the set of rules and regulations enforced by the state to regulate the human behavior in society

the system of rules which a particular country or community recognizes as regulating the actions of its members and which it may enforce by the imposition of penalties

Main Difference between Law and Morality

Law is enforced by the state

Basis for Law

Existing or changing morality serves as the basis for the law

Jurisprudence

Defined as the science and philosophy of law

defines several schools of thought that are used to describe various approaches to the appropriate function of law and how legal doctrines should be developed and applied

Critical Thinking in Legal Analysis

Includes the application of evaluative standards to assess the quality or reasoning being offered to support the conclusion

Pattern of Careful Thinking (Critical Thinkers)

1. Find the facts

2. Look for the issue

3. Identify the judge's reasons and conclusion

4. Locate in the decision the rules of law that govern the judge's reasoning

5. Apply critical thinking to the reasoning (look for potential ambiguity

consider strength of analogies

Legal terms

Sometimes referred to as jargon or legalese

Code of Hammurabi (Contracts)

Recognizes many ways of disposing of property (sale

Assignment of Contracts (Code of Hammurabi)

Rules regarding assigning tenure of fields

Acts of God (Code of Hammurabi)

Exemptions from debt repayment if grain is prostrated by storm

Bailments (Code of Hammurabi)

Rules regarding storing corn for safekeeping

Agency (Code of Hammurabi)

A merchant giving an agent goods to transport

Written Contract/Witnesses (Code of Hammurabi)

Requirement for witnesses and contracts for safekeeping of valuables

Roman Law of Obligations

The basis for the modern legal framework for contracts under both Civil Law and Common Law

Civil Code

An updated and codified version of the Code of Justinian

Dooms (Anglo-Saxon Law)

Anglo-Saxon word similar to "law

Courts of Equity (Anglo-Saxon Law)

Courts controlled by the Catholic Church that dealt with disputes over contracts

Written Word Introduction (Anglo-Saxon Law)

Occurred in 596 AD when Pope Gregory sent monks who converted King Ethelred to Christianity

Fragment of Contract Law from Dooms of Kings Hlothhære and Eadric

7th Century Kent rules requiring two or three unblemished freemen or the king's town-reeve as witnesses for property purchases

Remedy in Anglo-Saxon Contract Claims

Money damages appear to be the normal remedy for contract claims

Equitable Contract Claims (Anglo-Saxon Law)

Specific performance or rescission were handled by ecclesiastical courts at this time

"De legibus et consuetudinibus Angliae"

"On the Laws and Customs of England

Origin of Florida Contract Laws

In the autumn of 1829

Legal Awareness in Business

Applying legal theories in practice to enable proactive business planning

Constitutional Law

The foundation for all other law in the United States and the supreme law of the land

Preamble of U.S. Constitution

"We the People of the United States

Article I

Section 1 of U.S. Constitution

Florida Constitution of 1838

Adopted prior to statehood

Preamble of Florida Constitution of 1968

"We

Statutes

Written laws that are passed by the federal or a state legislature and then either approved or rejected by the executive branch

Ordinances

Written laws at the local level

generally regulate issues such as zoning or impose health and safety regulations

Plain Meaning Rule (Statutory Interpretation)

If the words in the statute have clear and widely understood meanings

Statutory Scheme

The structure of the statute and the format of its mandates in a law

Stare Decisis

Latin maxim "Stare Decisis et non quieta movere" which means "To stand by precedent and not to disturb what is settled"

the principle that similar cases with similar facts and issues should have the same judicial outcome

and it is one of the most important concepts in American law

Precedent

The application of the law of previous cases to current cases with substantially similar circumstances

Roman Law Origins of Stare Decisis

From the Codex Constitutionum of Emperor Justinian in 534 AD

Advantages of Stare Decisis

Allows individuals and business to have some degree of confidence that the law will remain reasonably consistent

requires all lower courts to follow the case precedent as long as no new statutory law has been enacted

Overturning Precedent

A former decision can be declared as "not law" if it is found to be manifestly absurd or unjust

Plessy v. Ferguson (1896)

US Supreme Court case that ruled racially separate facilities

Brown v. Board of Education (1954)

US Supreme Court case that overturned Plessy v. Ferguson

Administrative Law

Source of law that regulates the exercise of authority by government agencies

Also known as regulations

Hierarchy of Primary Sources of Federal Law

U.S. Constitution

Hierarchy of Primary Sources of State Law

State Constitution

Secondary Sources of Law

Have no independent authority and are not legally binding

Restatements of the Law

Collections of uniform legal principles focused on specific areas of traditional state law

common examples include torts and contracts

Model State Statutes

Various sets of statutes drafted by legal experts as models for state legislatures to adopt in their individual jurisdictions

Uniform Model Laws

Laws drafted by legal experts for establishing uniform standards in areas where national interests would be achieved through uniform application

Civil Law

Designed to compensate parties (including businesses) for losses as a result of another's conduct

Criminal Law

Designed to protect society

violations result in penalties such as fines or imprisonment

Substantive Law

Provides individuals with rights and creates certain duties

Procedural Law

Provides a structure and sets out rules for pursuing substantive rights

Law versus Equity

Terms used to describe judicial action intended to compensate an injured party in a civil lawsuit

these measures are known as remedies

Remedies at Law

Generally take the form of money damages

Equitable Remedies or Relief

Generally include an injunction or a restraining order (a judicial order requiring a party to cease a certain activity

Public Laws

Those derived from some government entity

Private Laws

Recognized as binding between two parties even though no specific statute or regulation provides for the rights of the parties

Equity Aids the Vigilant

An equitable maxim stating that the law favors those who exercise vigilance in pursuing their claims and disfavors those who rest on their legal rights by failing to act to protect their rights in a reasonable period of time

Substance over Form

An equitable maxim stating that when applying the law

Clean Hands Doctrine

An equitable maxim stating that courts are not inclined to decide a dispute based on technicalities that benefited a party who acted dishonestly