COURSE SYLLABUS
BLAW 202
FALL 2010
VIVEK PANDE
BUSINESS LAW 202
Course Syllabus
Course Summary
This course provides an overview of the law that affects business and commerce. Students will
be introduced to law in general and the differences among various legal systems. The specific
legal concepts that influence the structure and conduct of global business will be explained and
the corresponding provisions of Turkish commercial law will be described. Instructional
emphasis will be placed on imparting practical knowledge. For a detailed list of the topics
covered, please see the Course Topics section below.
Instructor
Name:
Office:
Phone:
Email:
Office Hours:
Vivek Pandé
CASE 102
338-1769
vpande@ku.edu.tr
Tuesdays and Thursdays, 17:00 - 18:00, or by appointment
Assistant
Name:
Office:
CASE 277
Phone:
Email:
Office Hours: TBA
Recommended Textbook
August, Ray. International Business Law, 5th ed., Pearson International 2009
Required Supplementary Material
The instructor has prepared an outline of the textbook and all Turkish law that will be studied in
the class. Students must download this outline from the instructor’s BLAW 202 share folder
which can be found on the KU F: drive. Students are responsible for all material on the outline,
whether or not discussed in class.
Class Attendance
Though class attendance is not required, it is highly recommended. It is very unlikely that
students who do not attend class regularly can do well in this course. However, students who
attend class must abide by the class conduct rules outlined in the next section.
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COURSE SYLLABUS
BLAW 202
FALL 2010
VIVEK PANDE
Class Conduct
One of the important functions of a university education is to prepare students for life in the
professional world. Accordingly, the instructor expects students to behave in class as they would
in a professional business environment. Because the following conduct would be considered
rude and disruptive in a business setting such as a client meeting or a corporate presentation,
these activities are equally unacceptable in class and are prohibited:
 Talking to other students during class. This is annoying to surrounding students and
disrespectful to the instructor.
 Using cell phones in any manner. All phones should be switched off in the classroom.
 Sleeping
 Arriving late repeatedly or leaving early without the prior permission of the instructor.
 Coming to class without a notebook and writing implement.
The instructor reserves the right to deduct any number of points from a student’s final
grade on account of class misconduct.
Grading
30% Mid-Term Examination 1 (open-book). Exact date, time and place TBA by the Registrar.
30% Mid-Term Examination 2 (open-book). Exact date, time and place TBA by the Registrar.
40% Final Examination (cumulative, open-book). Exact date, time and place TBA by the
Registrar.
The examinations will be composed of multiple choice, matching, true-false and/or short answer
questions. Any student who has a conflict with any examination date or time must contact the
instructor in advance to make alternative arrangements. Any student who misses any
examination without an authorized excuse shall receive a zero on that examination. Any student
who misses any examination on account of an authorized excuse must contact the instructor
within one week to arrange a make-up examination.
The instructor will grade regularly scheduled examinations on a scale of 0-100 using a curved
grading system, i.e., all students’ grades will be mathematically adjusted such that the mean class
grade is an 80; however, in no event shall a student receive a curved grade higher than 100. This
ensures that all students receive a grade which is based on their performance relative to that of
their colleagues. However, since make-up and/or amnesty examinations are not the same as
regularly scheduled examinations, make-up and/or amnesty examinations will not be curved.
Final class numerical grades will be rounded to the nearest whole number using conventional
mathematical principles (<.5 = lower, ≥.5 = higher) and converted to letter grades using the
following conversion table:
100-93 = A
92-90 = A-
89-87 = B+
86-83 = B
82-80 = B-
79-77 = C+
76-73 = C
72-70 = C-
69-67 = D+
67-60 = D
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less than 60 = F
COURSE SYLLABUS
BLAW 202
FALL 2010
VIVEK PANDE
Academic Honesty
Honesty and trust are important to all of us as individuals. Students and faculty adhere to the
following principles of academic honesty at Koç University:
 Accountability for all submitted work, written or oral. Copying from others or providing
answers or information, written or oral, to others is cheating.
 Providing proper acknowledgement of the original author. Copying from another student’s
paper or from another source without written acknowledgement is plagiarism.
 Authorized Teamwork. Unauthorized help from another person or having someone else
write one’s paper or assignment is collusion.
The instructor has a zero tolerance policy for cheating, plagiarism and collusion which are
serious offenses. Violations will result in a student receiving a zero in that component of the
class and will be reported to the University Disciplinary Committee for further disciplinary
action.
How to Succeed in this Course
This course is about the law of business. Since law is essentially a collection of rules, the rules
of law governing Turkish and international business are set forth in the instructor’s outline and
the textbook. However, rules are meaningless unless one understands their practical application.
Accordingly, in class, the instructor will explain how these rules of law apply to business in real
life using hypothetical situations and examples from current events. The open-book exams will
test students on their understanding of the practical application of business law. Therefore:
 To pass the class, at a minimum, students must read the relevant outline section before class
(usually 5-10 pages), pay attention in class, and take notes regarding the practical application
of the law. Students should then review the outline and their notes thoroughly prior to
examinations. Depending on the ability of the student, it is possible for a student to do this
much work and get an A in the class, presuming the student attends class regularly.
 Students who wish to ensure a more thorough understanding of the course material, should
also read the relevant sections of the recommended course textbook prior to class. It is not
necessary to read the legal cases in the recommended course textbook.
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COURSE SYLLABUS
BLAW 202
FALL 2010
VIVEK PANDE
Course Topics
The course can be broken down into the following topics and subtopics.
 Introduction
 Law and its effect on business
 Different types of law and legal systems/families
 Sources of law
 Selecting a business
 Trade in goods
 Contracts
 Transportation
 Financial documents
 Regulation of trade in goods
 Trade in services
 Trade in intellectual property
 Acquisition of intellectual property
 Licensing intellectual property rights
 Regulation of trade in intellectual property
 Establishing a business
 Legal forms of business associations
 Subordinate business types
 Business financing
 Operating a business
 General business regulation
 Turkish commercial law
 Commercial enterprises
 Merchants
 Commercial transactions
 Specific business regulation by way of
 Unfair competition law
 Criminal law
 Tort law
 Securities law
 Labor law
 Consumer protection law
 Other legal issues related to
 Money and banking
 Insurance
 Taxation
 Travel and immigration
 Business etiquette
 Business dispute resolution
 Negotiation
 Mediation/Arbitration
 Litigation
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