ACCOUNTING 324HY
ADVANCED BUSINESS LAW
Spring Semester 2012
SYLLABUS
Primary Learning Objectives:
*Knowledge of and facility with fundamental legal concepts, the laws and
particularly regulations, administrative guidance and statutes that affect business.
*Ability to perform basic legal research.
*Present legal arguments and thought through effective oral and written
communication.
*Discuss and reach consensus on legal issues in a group setting with a variety of
differing viewpoints.
Class Times:
Mondays
6:00 to 7:50 P.M.
Instructor:
Catherine E. Jorgens, Esq.
262-951-3024 or cjorgens@carrollu.edu
This class is a hybrid class and partially online using MyCourses on the Carroll
University portal. I check my email at least once a day. You can expect a response
to questions about course content within 24 hours. Your question and my answer
will be posted in an announcement on the MyCourses course site, so that the entire
class receives the same clarification.
Office Hours:
Mondays 1-3, Wednesdays 2-4 pm or other times by appointment
301 Voorhees Hall
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Text
West's Business Law, Clarkson et al., 12th Edition, either new or used. Note: previous
semesters of this course required the purchase of additional Web resources called
"WebTutor". You do not need WebTutor for this course.
Business Law: Text and Cases Legal, Ethical, Global, and Corporate
Environment, 12th Edition
Kenneth W. Clarkson, Roger LeRoy Miller,
Frank B. Cross
ISBN-10: 0538470828
ISBN-13: 9780538470827
Class Structure, Exams and Projects
Class Structure
Each week, we will cover two to three chapters in your textbook. All of the assignments,
quizzes and reading material (other than the textbook) will be available in weekly units
on our MyCourses site. Weeks in the class run from Wednesday to the following
Tuesday. The material for each is only available for that week. In other words, you
cannot "catch up" on material you missed in Week 2 in Week 3. In general, each week
will look like this:
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Saturday
Sunday
Monday
Until 6pm
Monday
6-8pm
Monday after
class/Tuesday
Reading
Internet Assignments
Online Discussion
Class
Quiz
Reading
Our pace will be approximately two to three chapters each week. Our textbook is geared
for a two-semester Business Law course. Because this course presumed that you have
covered basic legal concepts in BUS290, Principles of Business Law, or its equivalent,
we will begin with Chapter 19. If you feel you need a review of basic concepts, Chapters
1-18 of this textbook are excellent.
Internet Assignments
Even more so than other fields, you will find through your research that "the law" is in a
constant state of change. To learn business law that will be useful to you in your career,
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it is critical that you gain the ability to identify a legal question and research the current
answer to that question. Each week, you will be provided links to some of the legal
resources available on the internet and a set of legal questions. By exploring these
sources of the law, you will be able to answer the questions posed. You may do so
succinctly, but please maintain a professional writing style (in other words, write in
complete sentences!). Please do not cut and paste directly from the internet sources
provided to you. Each week, you will upload your answers in a Word document (any
version of Word will work) to the Assignment link, which will be available from
Thursday at 12:01 a.m. to Monday at 6:00 p.m. Late assignments will not be accepted.
Please note – these are individual assignments. I will use software that compares your
work with the work turned in by your colleagues. Plagiarism will be referred to the
Office of Academic Affairs for further action and will result in a "0" for the assignment.
Quizzes
There will be weekly one-hour multiple choice quizzes, which may be take any time from
the end of class each Monday through Tuesday at midnight. The quizzes are not
cumulative. For example, in Week 3 we are covering Chapters 21, 22 and 23. The
questions will be only from those chapters, and not from the material covered in Week 2.
The quizzes will be taken online through the MyCourses site. An example of the quizzes
will be posted to give you an idea of the type of question you can expect. The quiz is 25
questions in one hour. If you run over the allotted time, your grade will be lowered 5%
for each minute you run over, so watch the clock.
Weekly Discussions
Each week, the class will participate in a discussion about a legal problem provided on
My Courses. Your discussion contributions should take place after you have had an
opportunity to read the chapters for the week and will give you an opportunity to use the
concepts and terminology from the chapters. At a minimum, you are required to post an
answer or reaction to the questions that uses the concepts from your weekly reading, and
two substantive responses to your colleagues' posts. A detailed grading rubric with my
expectations for your participation will be provided.
Appellate Argument Presentations
At Celebrate Carroll, pairs of students will argue a business law case, one student
representing the appellant and one student representing the respondent. Please plan to
attend Celebrate Carroll for an hour the afternoon of April 25, 2012. To prepare for oral
argument, each "attorney" should read the full opinions of the court, including any
concurring and dissenting opinions and, if available, the briefs filed by the parties and
any press coverage. Students will be graded on the quality of the oral presentation –
there is no written component to this assignment. A detailed grading rubric with my
expectations for your participation will be provided.
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Grading
All of your quizzes will be cumulatively worth 100 points, the Internet Assignments are
cumulatively worth 100 points, and Class Attendance/Participation and Weekly
Discussions are worth 50 points and the Appellate Argument is worth 50 points. The
graded activities will be average on a prorated basis at the end of the semester to obtain
your final grade, and will be graded based upon the scale below:
95-100%
90-94%
85-89%
80-84%
A
A/B
B
B/C
70-79%
60-69%
<60%
C
D
F
Individual coursework grades will be rounded to the nearest whole integer. Your final
grade will not be rounded.
Attendance, Preparation and Participation
Attendance, preparation and participation in class are expected. Grades may be lowered
up to one full grade for poor attendance, preparation and/or participation. Students in
jeopardy of being adversely affected by this policy will be notified by the instructor.
Accommodations for Persons With Disabilities
Students with documented disabilities who may need accommodations or any student
considering obtaining documentation should make an appointment with Ms. Marty
Bledsoe, our disabilities coordinator, no later than the first week of class. She can be
reached by calling 524-7335 or contacting her via e-mail at mbledsoe@carrollu.edu.
Notification of the Academic Integrity Policy
Due notification is made to students regarding student academic integrity. Students
should read and be familiar with the terms and conditions described in the Student
Handbook. This document is also available online under ‘Student Life’ on Carroll’s
intranet.
Right to Modify
The instructor reserves the right to modify this document.
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CLASS SCHEDULE
Week 1:
Class on January 23, 2012
Introduction and Course Overview
Week 2: January 25, 2012 - Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Class on Monday, January 30, 2012
Contract Law and The UCC; Title, Risk and Insurable Interest,
Assigned Reading: Chapters 19, 20, Appendix C (NB – you only need to read the UCC
sections referred to in your text)
Week 3: Wednesday, February 1, 2012-Tuesday, February 7, 2012
Class on Monday, February 6, 2012
Performance, Warranty and Product Liability under the UCC
Assigned Reading: Chapters 21, 22, 23
Week 4: Wednesday, February 8, 2012-Tuesday, February 14, 2012
Class on Monday, February 13, 2012
Negotiable Instruments
Assigned Reading: Chapters 24, 25
Week 5: Wednesday, February 15, 2012-Tuesday, February 21, 2012
Class on Monday, February 20, 2012
Negotiable Instruments
Assigned Reading: Chapters 26, 27
Week 6: Wednesday, February 22, 2012-Tuesday, February 28, 2012
Class on Monday, February 27, 2012
Creditor/Debtor Relationships
Assigned Reading: Chapters 28, 29
Weeks 7: Wednesday, February 29, 2012-Tuesday, March 13, 2012
Class on Monday March 12, 2012
Bankruptcy and Mortgage
Assigned Reading: Chapters 30, 31
Week 8: Wednesday, March 14, 2012-Tuesday, March 20, 2012
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Class on Monday, March 19, 2012
Agency and Employment
Assigned Reading: Chapters 32, 33
Week 9: Wednesday, March 21, 2012-Tuesday, March 27, 2012
Class on Monday, March 26, 2012
Employment Regulation
Assigned Reading: Chapters 34, 35
Week 10: Wednesday, March 28, 2012-Tuesday, April 3, 2012
Class on Monday, April 2, 2012
Business Organizations
Assigned Reading: Chapters 36, 37, 38
Week 11: Wednesday, April 4, 2012-Tuesday, April 17, 2012
Class on Monday, April 16, 2012
Business Organizations
Assigned Reading: Chapters 39, 40, 41
Week 12: Wednesday, April 18, 2012-Tuesday, April 24, 2012
Class on Monday, April 23, 2012
Prepare for Appellate Arguments
Week 13: Wednesday, April 25, 2012-Tuesday, May 1, 2012
Appellate Arguments: Celebrate Carroll, April 25, 2012
Class on Monday, April 30, 2012
Professional Liability/CPA Exam Prep
Assigned Reading: Chapter 48
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