Chabot College
Fall, 2007
Course Outline for Business 27
LAW FOR SMALL BUSINESSES
Catalog Description:
27 - Law for Small Businesses
3 units
Legal issues for the small business, with emphasis on credit and collections, consumer rights,
taxes, e-commerce, property, and administrative law, and business liability insurance.
3 hours.
[Typical contact hours: 52.5]
Prerequisite Skills:
None
Expected Outcomes for Students:
Upon completion of this course, the student should be able to:
1. utilize basic business law terminology;
2. identify key legal risk and legal opportunity areas in a small business;
3. analyze business situations to identify critical insurable risks, such as negligence, product
liability, and business interruption;
4. structure a business to maximize debt collection, and to take appropriate steps when
debts are not paid;
5. develop legal advertising and sales practices;
6. comply with consumer safety laws;
7. manage a small business to minimize taxes;
8. identify “cyberlaw” issues, the issues associated with conducting business on the
internet;
9. structure appropriate property purchase or lease agreements;
10. identify administrative laws that impact his or her particular business;
11. explore ways to resolve issues without going to court;
12. find the right lawyer or accountant to help prevent or resolve legal issues.
Course Content:
1. Basic legal terminology
2. Alternative dispute resolution techniques
3. Overview of legal issues for the small business, including business organizations,
contract law, agency and employment law
4. Interviewing and selection of legal and accounting support services
5. Business insurance
6. Credit and collection law
7. Fair advertising laws
8. Consumer safety laws
9. Business tax law basics
10. Cyberlaw: consumer privacy, domain names, copyrights, internet advertising, internet
sales
11. Property contracts
12. Administrative laws
Methods of Presentation:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Lectures
Discussion
Analysis of cases
Guest speakers
Mock trials/debates
Video
Chabot College
Course Outline for Business 27, Page 2
Fall 2007
Assignments and Methods of Evaluating Student Progress:
1.
Typical Assignments
a. In a 2-3 page paper, describe your dream business, and the 5-7 key legal issues
you anticipate will arise in that business. For each issue, identify three ways to
minimize the risk.
b. Interview a local lawyer, following the interview guidelines on the allbusiness.com
website. Explain that you’re a business law student, and present a hypothetical
business law issue for your dream business. Post the answers, and your
evaluation of this attorney as a choice to handle this business law issue on the
course discussion board.
c. Develop a small advertisement for your dream business. Attach a 1-page analysis
of the advertising laws you considered when developing the ad, and how your ad
meets those legal requirements.
2.
Methods of Evaluating Student Progress
a. Midterm examination
b. Final examination
c. Case studies and legal analysis assignments
d. Presentations
e. Group projects
Textbook(s) Typical:
THE LAW (IN PLAIN ENGLISH) FOR SMALL BUSINESS, Leonard DuBoff, 3rd edition,
Sourcebooks, Inc., 2004.
LAW FOR SMALL BUSINESS OWNERS, 1st edition, Stephen M. Maple, Alpha Books, 2000.
Special Student Materials:
None
jn 09.06
Bus 27 course outline.doc