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SYLLABUS - Business Law 202
SPRING 2014
Meeting Times:
Sec. 1 - Mon/Wed, 14:00-15:15 pm (SOS B10)
Sec. 2 – Mon/Wed, 17:00-18:15 pm (SOS B10)
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Instructor:
E-Mail:
Phone:
Office:
Sanem Ozdural
sozdural@ku.edu.tr
338-1527
SOS 237 (Office Hours - Mon/Wed, 15:30-16:45 pm)
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COURSE DESCRIPTION
This course provides an introduction and overview of laws – both local and international - that affect
international business and trade. Students will be introduced to the origins and sources of law and the
different legal systems in the world. We will explore specific legal concepts that influence the structure
and conduct of global business, along with a description of the corresponding provisions of Turkish
commercial law, and the law of other jurisdictions. Instructional emphasis will be placed on practical
knowledge, and will be supplemented by comparative legal analysis.
COURSE OBJECTIVES
The primary goal of the course is to explain the legal framework of intranational and international laws
within which businesses operate on a global scale. Students will be introduced to legal concepts and the
way in which such concepts are dealt with in Turkey and other jurisdictions. Students will also be
provided with samples of international business contracts to assist them in understanding the nature and
issues involved in conducting international business.
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EXAMS AND EVALUATION (100 POINTS POSSIBLE)
Midterm Exam: 30 points
Term Paper: 30 points
Final Exam: 30 points
Participation: 10 points (see section “B” below)
A. ATTENDANCE
Lectures are likely to cover material that go beyond assigned readings, therefore students are strongly
recommended to attend all lectures. Moreover, there will be in-class activity quizzes (see section “B”)
which award participation points, which cannot be made up any other way.
B. PARTICIPATION
Students are strongly encouraged to participate in class discussions and ask questions raised by the
readings and/or lectures.
There will be 5 in-class activity quizzes during the semester worth 2 points each (for a maximum of 10
points). The activities will NOT be announced in advance. Students will not receive participation points
for an activity unless they attend and participate on that day.
C. EXAM MAKE-UP POLICY
Students who miss the midterm or final exams due to an emergency, and wish to take a make-up exam
should inform me, preferably before the date of the exam, but in any event no later than 24 hours after the
exam with a clear explanation of the emergency that prevented exam attendance. The decision to allow a
make-up exam is at the discretion of the instructor.
D. TERM PAPER
Students will be required to write a short term paper (date TBA) on a topic to be announced. Failure to
turn in the term paper in a timely manner will result in a deduction of five (5) points per day that the
paper is late.
KOÇ UNIVERSITY STATEMENT ON ACADEMIC HONESTY WITH EMPHASIS ON
PLAGIARISM
Koç University expects all its students to perform course-related activities in accordance with the rules set
forth in the Student Code of Conduct (http://vpaa.ku.edu.tr/academic/student-code-of-conduct). Actions
considered as academic dishonesty at Koç University include but are not limited to cheating, plagiarism,
collusion, and impersonating. This statement’s goal is to draw attention to cheating and plagiarism related
actions deemed unacceptable within the context of Student Code of Conduct:
All individual assignments must be completed by the student himself/herself, and all team assignments must
be completed by the members of the team, without the aid of other individuals. If a team member does not
contribute to the written documents or participate in the activities of the team, his/her name should not appear
on the work submitted for evaluation.
Plagiarism is defined as ‘borrowing or using someone else’s written statements or ideas without giving written
acknowledgement to the author’. Students are encouraged to conduct research beyond the course material, but
they must not use any documents prepared by current or previous students, or notes prepared by instructors at
Koç University or other universities without properly citing the source. Furthermore, students are expected to
adhere to the Classroom Code of Conduct (http://vpaa.ku.edu.tr/academic/classroom-code-of-conduct) and to
refrain from all forms of unacceptable behavior during lectures. Failure to adhere to expected behavior may
result in disciplinary action.
There are two kinds of plagiarism: Intentional and accidental. Intentional plagiarism (Example: Using a
classmate’s homework as one’s own because the student does not want to spend time working on that
homework) is considered intellectual theft, and there is no need to emphasize the wrongfulness of this act.
Accidental plagiarism, on the other hand, may be considered as a ‘more acceptable’ form of plagiarism by
some students, which is certainly not how it is perceived by the University administration and faculty. The
student is responsible from properly citing a source if he/she is making use of another person’s work. For an
example on accidental plagiarism, please refer to the document titled “An Example on Accidental Plagiarism”.
If you are unsure whether the action you will take would be a violation of Koç University’s Student Code of
Conduct, please consult with your instructor before taking that action.
An Example on Accidental Plagiarism
This example is taken from a document prepared by the City University of New York.
The following text is taken from Elaine Tyler May’s ‘Myths and Realities of the American Family’:
“Because women's wages often continue to reflect the fiction that men earn the family wage, single mothers
rarely earn enough to support themselves and their children adequately. And because work is still organized
around the assumption that mothers stay home with children, even though few mothers can afford to do so,
child-care facilities in the United States remain woefully inadequate.”
Below, there is an excerpt from a student’s homework, who made use of May’s original text:
“As Elaine Tyler May points out, “women's wages often continue to reflect the fiction that men earn the
family wage” (588). Thus many single mothers cannot support themselves and their children adequately.
Furthermore, since work is based on the assumption that mothers stay home with children, facilities for day
care in this country are still “woefully inadequate.” (May 589)”.
You may think that there is no plagiarism here since the student is citing the original author. However, this is
an instance of accidental plagiarism. Although the student cites May and uses quotation marks occasionally,
the rest of the sentences, more specifically the following section: “Thus many single mothers cannot support
themselves and their children adequately. Furthermore, since work is based on the assumption that mothers
stay home with children, facilities for day care in this country are still “woefully inadequate.” (May 589)”
almost exactly duplicates May’s original language. So, in order to avoid plagiarism, the student either had to
use quotation marks for the rest of the sentences as well, or he/she had to paraphrase May’s ideas by using not
only his/her own words, but his/her own original ideas as well. You should keep in mind that accidental
plagiarism often occurs when the student does not really understand the original text but still tries to make use
of it. Understanding the original text and understanding why you agree or disagree with the ideas proposed in
that text is crucial both for avoiding plagiarism and for your intellectual development.
Reference(s):
Avoiding and Detecting Plagiarism: A Guide for Graduate Students and Faculty. The Graduate
Center.
City
University
of
New
York,
2012.
Web.
<http://www.gc.cuny.edu/CUNY_GC/media/CUNY-GraduateCenter/PDF/Publications/AvoidingPlagiarism.pdf>
HONOUR CODE
As an expression of your commitment to the academic integrity of our community you will handwrite and
sign the following at the conclusion of all exams:
“I, ________, certify on my honour that I have not copied or plagiarized the work of another, or otherwise
cheated during this exam.”
TEACHING MATERIALS
A “Course Reading Packet” and related handouts will be provided to students during the semester. Other
readings which are helpful (but not required) are:
1. August, Ray: International Business Law (any edition)
2. Schaffer, Richard: International Law and its Environment (any edition)
OTHER INFORMATION
Email – Please check your email daily. I send class information and announcements regularly.
Phones - The use of mobile phones is prohibited during class and/or exams. If a student violates this
policy or is otherwise disruptive in class, he or she is subject to removal from class.
KU Policies - The Student Code of Conduct, Classroom Code of Conduct, and Academic Grievance
Procedure can all be found in the following site: http://www.ku.edu.tr/en/navigation/koc-student.
Contact - Please consult me regarding any questions you have about this course. You can send me an
email (sozdural@ku.edu.tr), or stop by during office hours. If my office hours conflict with your
schedule, please contact me to make an appointment.
COURSE SCHEDULE & TOPIC LIST (subject to modification, as needed)
LAW AND OTHER SOCIAL RULES (WEEK 1)
I) Law, Justice and Social Order
II) Intro to Legal Systems of the World -- Common Law, Civil Law, Islamic Law, Socialist law
III) Sources of Law -- Turkey
PUBLIC LAW AND PRIVATE LAW (WEEKS 2-3)
I) General/Different Types -- Private and Public
II) Areas of Public Law -- Constitutional, Administrative, and Criminal
III) Areas of Private(Civil) Law -- Persons, Property, and Obligations
LAW OF OBLIGATIONS--CONTRACT AND TORT (WEEKS 3-4)
I) Law of Contracts
A) Principle of Freedom of Contract
B) Formation of Contracts
C) Representation
D) Classification of Contracts (enforceability)
E) Termination of Contracts
II) Tort
A) Elements of an action in tort
B) Strict liability
SECURITY CONTRACTS (WEEK 5)
I) Personal Securities
A) Suretyship (Kefalet)
B) Guarantees (Garanti)
II) Real Securities
A) Real Security over Immovable Property
B) Real Security over Movables
INTERNATIONAL SALES CONTRACTS (WEEKS 6-7)
I) Sales contracts ın general
II) U.N. Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods (CISG)
III) Basic Elements of an Int'l Sales Contract
IV) ICC Model Sales Contract
V) ADR
INTERNATIONAL TRADE (WEEKS 8-9)
I) Bretton Woods System
II) International Organizations: World Bank, IMF, WTO
III) Issues in International Trade: subsidies, dumping, tariffs
COMPANY LAW (WEEK 10)
I) In General
II) Company Law In The EU
III) Turkish Company Law -- New TCC, Company Types, Taxation Comparing Company Law in other
jurisdictions
COMPETITION LAW (WEEKS 11-12)
I) Introduction -- Competition and Market Efficiencies
II) EU and U.S. Competition Law
III) Turkish Competition Law
A)Unfair Competition Law v. Competition (Antitrust) Law
B) Agreements by Undertakings/Concerted Practices
C) Abuse of Dominant Position
D) Merger Control
E) Fines
LAW OF INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY (WEEKS 13-14)
I) Intellectual property protection in general
II) Patents
A) EU Patent Law
B) U.S. Law
III) Trademarks
A) Generally
B) Trademark Protection in The EU
C) Turkish Trademark Law
IV) Copyrights
A) Generally
B) Turkish Copyright Law