Ba-226 / Business Law

BA-226 / BUSINESS LAW

Spring Term, 2012 / CRN: 45530 / M&W 3:00 – 4:20 p.m. // Room: IA-212

CRN: 45531 / T&Th 1:00 – 2:20 p.m. // Room: MKH - 203

Required Text: Essentials of Business Law – 4thedition

Instructor: Myrna Gusdorf / MKH-110 / Phone: 917-4267 / E-mail:

Office Hours: Mon. thru Thurs. 2:30 – 3:00 p.m. and 4:30 - 5:00 p.m.

Cell phones must be OFF and OUT OF SIGHT while in class!

______

Topic Reading ______

Week #1 – 4/2 – 4/6

Introduction to the Legal SystemCh. 1

Ethics & Social ResponsibilityCh. 2 ______Week #2 – 4/9 – 4/13

Dispute ResolutionCh. 3

Common Law_& Constitutional Law*Ch. 4 & 5

Week #3 – 4/16 – 4/20(Thursday – No Class)

Torts*Ch. 6

Criminal LawCh. 7 _ _

Week #4 – 4/23 – 4/27

Review

Exam #1 / Chapters 1 - 7Exam #1 / Chapters 1 - 7______

Week #5 – 4/30 – 5/4

Introduction to Contracts / AgreementCh. 9 & 10

Consideration & Legality* Ch. 11 & 12 __

Week #6 – 5/7 – 5/11

Capacity, Consent & Written ContractsCh. 13 & 14

_ Third Parties / Performance & DischargeCh. 15 & 16 Contracts Due __

Week #7 – 5/14 – 5/18

Breach & RemediesCh. 17

Exam #2Exam #2 / Contracts_Ch. 9 - 17

Week #8 – 5/21 - 5/24

AgencyCh. 27

Employment Law*Ch. 28 ______

Week #9 – 5/28 – 6/1 (Monday Holiday)

Employment LawCh. 28

Bankruptcy*Ch. 26______

Week #10 – 6/4 – 6/8

Property*Ch. 32

Review ______

Week #11 Finals Week / Exam #3/ Chapters 26, 27, 28 & 32

BA-224Monday / June 11 1:00 - 2:50 p.m.Room / IA-212

BA-226Monday / June 113:00 - 4:50 p.m.Room / IA-212

BA-226Tuesday / June 122:30 - 4:20 p.m.Room / MKH-203

BA-226 Business Law / Spring Term – 2012

Syllabus and PowerPoint Slides

You will find a copy of the class syllabus as well as PowerPoint outlines of my lectures on my instructor’s website. To locate the material, start at LBCC’s home page – Scroll to the menu at the bottom of the page and click on Instructor Websites, scroll down to “G” and click on Myrna Gusdorf to bring up the opening page of the website. Scroll to the bottom of the page and click on BA-226 Business Law to bring up the material for this class.

Assignments

All assignments must be typed, stapled and turned in at the beginning of class. Hand-written or late assignments are not accepted for grading. Keep a copy of your assignments just in case we discuss them in class. Only if you are unable to attend class on a day when an assignment is due, may you send me the assignment electronically. As long as you submit it prior to class, it will not be considered late. However, if you do not submit it until after class begins, the assignment will be considered late and will not be graded.

Classroom Etiquette

During class please turn off your cell phones, iPods (or equivalent), and laptops. If you need to leave your cell phone on for an emergency, please let me know prior to class. I will ask that you turn off the ringer and change the setting to vibrate.

Contacting your Instructor

E-mail is generally the best way to contact me. Be sure to identify yourself clearly when sending me an e-mail. In the reference section of your e-mail, please identify yourself by your last name and the class designation “B. Law.” For example, if I were sending an e-mail, my reference line would read: Gusdorf – B. Law. This way I know it’s you. I am very cautious regarding spam and computer viruses and I will delete, unopened, any e-mail that I cannot identify. Monday through Friday, I will respond within 24 hours whenever possible.

Tracking your Grades

Your papers will be graded with comments and points earned and returned to you as quickly as possible; usually by the next class period. As I don't post scores on either Blackboard or Moodle, it is up to you to keep track of your point accumulation throughout the term. There is a tally chart at the end of this syllabus for tracking or you may want to create a spreadsheet for your own use.

Assignments and Grading

Exams – 3 @ 75 points each 225 points = 66% of grade

There will be three exams at 75 points each. Exams will be true/false, multiple choice and short answer essay. They will cover the material from the text as well as information from class discussions and in-class activities. If you have an emergency and cannot be in class on the day of the exam, you must notify me in advance to schedule an alternative activity. If you have not made alternative activity arrangements prior to the exam time, there is no make-up for the missed exam. There will be no exceptions.

In-Class Activities and Homework – 4 @ 10 points each 40 points = 12% of grade

Not all information comes from the textbook, as a great deal of learning takes place through class activities and discussion. Your attendance in class is important, as we will be discussing legal theory and pertinent cases as well as contemporary issues. A variety of activities will be conducted in class for credit. These activities are not scheduled in advance and will occur when appropriate and at the instructor’s discretion. Activities may consist of, but are not limited to; random quizzes, case discussions, homework assignments, games, group activities and written exercises. You must be present in class when the activity is conducted to qualify for points. There is no make-up of missed in-class activities. Late arrival and early departure are considered missed classes. Homework activities are due at the beginning of class on the due dates assigned. Late homework will not be accepted. There will be no exceptions. To accommodate an unexpected missed class when a student may miss an activity, one activity will be dropped from the total. Therefore, 5 activities will be conducted during the term, but only 4 activities will count toward the grade total.

Chapter Questions * 5 @ 5 points each 25 points = 7% of grade

Where indicated by an asterisk (*) on the course schedule, you are expected to bring to class a question that the reading for that day's topic raised for you. The chapter questions are intended to help you prepare for class and they will be used for class discussion. Your question is due at the beginning of class and it must be typed and printed when turned in. If you don't have a personal computer or printer there are computers and printers here on campus that you can use. Do not turn in hand-written questions and do not ask me to print your paper - it is your responsibility to have your paper prepared for class. Question assignments are due at the beginning of class. Late papers and electronic submissions will not be accepted. As with the in-class activities, you will be allowed to miss one question with no penalty as there are six question topics assigned and only five will count toward your grade.

Contract Assignment - Due: May 5 / 6 50 points = 15% of grade

By the time we reach week six of the term, you will have read several chapters on contract law. You will be familiar with the basic terminology of contract law and the requirements necessary to create an enforceable contract. It's time to try your hand at writing a contract! Your assignment is to write a contract between you and me for the grade you will receive in this class. Remember to write in clear understandable terms - no legalize please! Be specific in your terms and clear in what is expected of each party. Note the four elements of a contract as listed on page 226 of your text. Besides what you have learned from your reading, I would encourage you to research existing contracts as examples, but DO NOT attempt to find and use a standard form contract and just fill in the blanks. Contracts are written to address specific circumstances and are therefore each unique to the requirements needed by the participants. Therefore, there is no standard form that will meet the requirements of contracting for your class grade; you must write your own to meet the criteria of this assignment.

As in any business document, format and structure are important. Your assignment should be well written. Your contract must be typed and stapled in the upper left corner when submitted. Proofread carefully and pay attention to sentence structure, grammar and spelling. Your paper will lose points for careless mistakes. If you are not confident of your writing skills, I recommend you use the services of the writing desk in the learning center as they will help you correct errors and edit properly. Your assignment is due at the beginning of class on the date assigned for the class in which you are registered.

Grading Scale

306 – 340 points = A / 90% +

272 – 305 points = B / 80 – 89%

238 – 271 points = C / 70 – 79%

204 – 237 points = D / 60 – 69%

Less than 204 = F / 59% or less

Students who are unable to successfully complete the course should withdraw in accordance with the school’s policy and the dates set forth in the catalog. I will not be giving “I” or “Y” grades.

Students who may need accommodations due to documented disabilities;those who have medical information which the instructor should know, or who need special arrangements in an emergency, should speak with the instructor during the first week of class. If you have not accessed services and think you may need them, please contact Disability Services, 917-4789.

LBCC prohibits unlawful discrimination based on race, color, religion, ethnicity, use of native language, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, marital status, disability, veteran status, age, or any other status protected under applicable federal, state, or local laws.

(for further information

Track Your Grades:

Exam #14 - 25/2675 pts.______

Exam #25 -16/1775 pts.______

Exam #3 (Final)6 - 11/1275 pts.______

Contract5 - 9/1050 pts.______

Question #14 - 11/125 pts.______

Question #24 - 16/175 pts. ______

Question #3 5 -2/35 pts.______

Question #4 5 -23/245 pts.______

Question #5 5 -30/315 pts.

Question #6 (extra) 6 - 4/5______

In-class activity #110 pts.______

In-class activity #210 pts.______

In-class activity #310 pts.______

In-class activity #410 pts. ______

In-class activity #5 (extra)______

BA-226 / Syllabus, Spring term, 2012