Business Law Test 1

Legislation

Bills originate in congressional committees and go from there to the full House of Representatives or Senate. If both houses pass the bill, the legislation normally must go to a Conference Committee to resolve differences between the two versions. The compromise version then goes from the Conference Committee back to both houses and if it is passed by both, to the president. If the president signs the bill, it becomes a statute, if he vetoes it, Congress can pass it over his veto with a two thirds majority in each house

Administrative Agencies

Congress creates federal administrative agencies with enabling legislation, the Administrative Procedure Act controls how legacies do their work

Statutory Interpretation

Courts interpret a statute by using the plain meaning rule, then, if necessary, legislative history and intent, and finally, public policy

Common Law

Evolves in awkward fits and starts because courts attempt to achieve two contradictory purposes; predictability and flexibility

Why bother with ethics?

Four reasons to be concerned with ethics in a business environment: society as a whole benefits from ethical behavior, people feel better when they behave ethically, unethical behavior can be very costly, ethical behavior is more likely to pay off

Ethics Checklist

What are the facts? What are the critical issues? Who are the stakeholders? What are the alternatives? What are the ethical implications of each alternative? Is is legal? How would it look in the light of day? What are the consequences? Does it value important values?

Appeals

appeals court has many options, the court may affirm, upholding the lower court's decision; modify changing the verdict but leaving the same party victorious; reverse, transforming the loser into the winner and/or remand, sending the case back to the lower court

Appellate Courts

appeals courts generally accept the facts found by the trial court and review the trial record for errors of law

Money

campaign contributions and spending are largely controlled

Bystander rule

common law rule holds that, generally, no one has a duty to assist someone in peril unless the bystander himself created the danger, courts have carved some exceptions during the last 100 years but the basic rule still stands

Jurisprudence

concerned with the basic nature of law

Criminal Law

concerns behavior so threatening to society that it is outlawed altogether, deals with duties and disputes between parties not with outlawed behavior

Discovery

critical pre-trial opportunity for both parties to learn the strengths and weaknesses of the opponent's case. Important forms of discovery include interrogatories, despositions, production of documents and objects, physical and mental examinations, and requests for admissions

Substantive Law

defines rights of the people

Procedural Law

describes the processes for settling disputes

Rules of Evidence

determine what questions may be asked during trial, what testimony may be given, and what documents may be introduced

Motions

formal request sent to the court

Jury Trials

generally, both plaintiff and defendant may demand a jury in any lawsuit for money damages

Stare decises

means "let the decision stand" and indicates that once a court has decided a particular issue, it will generally apply the same rule in future cases

Burden of Proof

plaintiff's burden of proof in a civil lawsuit is preponderance of the evidence meaning that its version of the facts must be at least slightly more persuasive than the defendant's, in a criminal prosecution the government must offer proof beyond a reasonable doubt in order to win a conviction

Voir Dire

process of selecting jurors in order to obtain an impartial panel

Summary Judgment

ruling by the court that no trial is necessary because there are no essential facts in a dispute

Agency Limitations

the four most important limitations on the power of federal agencies are statutory control in the enabling legislation and the APA; political control by Congress and the President; judicial review; and the informational control created by the Freedom of Information Act and the Privacy Act

Trial Courts

trial courts determine facts and apply the law to the facts

Adjudication

Agencies adjudicate cases, meaning that they hold hearings and decide issues. Adjudication generally begins with a hearing before an administrative law judge and may involve an appeal to the full agency or ultimately to federal court

Investigation

Agencies have broad investigatory powers and may use subpoenas and, in some cases, warrantless searches to obtain information

Rulemaking

Agencies may promulgate legislative rules, which generally have the effect of statutes or interpretive rules, which merely interpret existing statutes

ADR

Alternative Dispute Resolution is any formal or informal process to settle disputes without a trial. Mediation, arbitration, and other forms of ADR are growing rapidly

Verdicts

Jury's decision in a case, losing party may be ask the trial judge to overturn the verdict, seeking a judgment non obstante veredicto or a new trial but judges seldom grant either

Three theories of Jurisprudence

Legal Positivism: law is what the sovereign says it is Natural Law: an unjust law is no law at all Legal realism: who enforces the law is more important than what the law says

The Federal System

Our federal system of government means that law comes from a national government in Washington DC, and from 50 state governments

Primary Sources of Law

Primary sources of contemporary law are: United States Constitution and state constitutions Statutes, which are drafted by legislatures Common law, which is the body of cases decided by judges, as they follow earlier cases known as the precedent Administrative law: the rules and decisions made by federal and state administrative agencies

Legal History

The history of law foreshadows many current legal issues, including mediation, partnership liability, the jury system, the role of witnesses, the special value placed on land, the idea of precedent, and the difference between substantive and procedural law

Court Systems

There are many systems of courts, one federal and one in each state. A federal court will hear a case only if it involves a federal question or diversity jurisdiction

Other sources of contemporary law

Treaties and executive orders

Pleadings

a complaint and an answer are the two most important pleadings, that is, documents that start a lawsuit