FLORIDA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY
SCHOOL OF BUSINESS
ROOM Q16 5:00 TO 7:40 P.M. –THURSDAY
COURSE SYLLABUS
BUS 5400 and 2601 E-2 THE LEGAL AND SOCIAL
ENVIRONMENTS OF BUSINESS
Instructor:
William R. Northcutt, Esq.
Prerequisites: None
Office Phone: 773-5320
Spring Semester, 2005
Office House: M-F 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Home Phone: 777-3184
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COURSE DESCRIPTION:
This course will focus on some of the major legal principles that affect business and
society in the United States and the world at large. The course purpose is to equip the
student with a basic understanding of these principles. This will be accomplished by
lectures, recitation by students, tests and a game called Legal Jeopardy.
COURSE OBJECTIVES:
At the end of the course, the students should have developed a critical thinking approach
and a general knowledge of many of the legal principles and rules of law that govern
society in general and the business world in particular.
TEXT: “The Legal Environment of Business”, Kubasec, Brennan, and Browne, Third
Edition (2003) (Sic)
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COURSE OUTLINE: SPRING SEMESTER 2005
Week 1:
Week 2:
1/13/2005
1/20/2005
PART ONE – AN INTRODUCTION TO THE LAW
AND LEGAL ENVIRONMENT OF
BUSINESS
Chapter 1
Critical Thinking and Legal Reasoning
Round (1) -
Legal Jeopardy
Chapter 2
Chapter 4
Introduction to Law and the Legal
Environment of Business
Constitutional Principles
Round (2) -
Legal Jeopardy
Week 3:
Week 4:
1/27/2005
2/3/2005
Chapter 3
The International Legal Environment of
Business
Round (3) -
Legal Jeopardy
Chapter 5
The American Legal System
Round (4) -
Legal Jeopardy
Week 5:
2/10/2005
FIRST EXAM
Week 6:
2/17/2005
Chapter 7
Chapter 9
(25%) OPEN BOOK
Cyberlaw and Its Impact on the Legal
Environment
Ethics, Social Responsibility, and the
Business Manager
First Exam Review
No rounds of Legal Jeopardy
Week 7:
2/24/2005
Chapter 8
White Collar Crime and the Business
Community
Round (5) - Legal Jeopardy
______________________________________________________________________
Week 8:
3/3/2005
PART TWO – PRIVATE LAW AND THE LEGAL
ENVIRONMENT OF BUSINESS
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
The Law of Contracts and Sales
The Law of Contracts and Sales
Round (6) -
Legal Jeopardy
NOTE:
NO CLASS ON MARCH 10, 2005 – SPRING BREAK
Week 9:
3/17/2005
Chapter 12
The Law of Torts
Round (7) -
Legal Jeopardy
Week 10:
3/24/2005
SECOND EXAM (25%) CLOSED BOOK
Week 11:
3/31/2005
Chapter 14
Law of Property: Real, Personal, and
Intellectual
Second Exam Review
Week 12:
4/7/2005
Round (8) -
Legal Jeopardy
Chapter 15
Agency Law
PART THREE – PUBLIC LAW AND THE LEGAL
ENVIRONMENT OF BUSINESS
Week 13:
Week 14:
Week 15:
4/14/2005
4/21/2005
4/28/2005
Chapter 18
The Employment Relationship
Round (9) -
Legal Jeopardy
PART TWO – PRIVATE LAW AND THE LEGAL
ENVIRONMENT OF BUSINESS
Chapter 16
Law and Business Associations
Round 10 -
Legal Jeopardy
PART THREE – PUBLIC LAW AND THE LEGAL
ENVIRONMENT OF BUSINESS
Chapter 20
Employment Discrimination
Round 11 -
Legal Jeopardy
Round 12 – Legal Jeopardy
Championship Rounds of Legal Jeopardy
Rounds 13, 14, and 15 if necessary
Review for Final Exam; Chapter Make-up; Evaluation
Week 16:
5/5/2005
FINAL EXAM (25%) COMBINATION OF OPEN
AND CLOSED BOOK (6-8 P.M.)
ASSIGNMENTS
Each week 3-5 students will recite from that week’s assignment. Each student
will be required to brief at least one case. During some classes, beginning in the 1st class,
two teams of approximately 3-5 students each, pre-assigned, will answer questions in a
quiz-show format. All questions shall be from that week and the prior week’s material.
This is called legal jeopardy.
ATTENDANCE
Because ¼ of the course grade is determined by the above assignments,
attendance is mandatory. Attendance (or lack thereof) shall be a factor used to compute
the final grade.
ACADEMIC HONESTY
In cases of cheating or plagiarizing, Florida Tech’s policy will be strictly
enforced.
GRADING
The final grade will have 4 components:
1.
2.
3.
4.
¼ First Test
(Open Book)
¼ Second Test
(Closed Book) (Non-Cumulative)
¼ Final Test
(Open/Closed Book) (Non-Cumulative)
¼ Assignments:
a.
Case recitation in class
b.
Attendance
c.
Jeopardy performance; and winning jeopardy team will receive
100% of this 1/4