The aim of this module is to give you a general understanding of the principal areas of English law that may be encountered in business. The module is to give you an introduction to how business law is made. You will be introduced to possible business liabilities under criminal and civil law, the main methods of resolving business disputes including the court system of England and Wales and alternative methods of dispute resolution. You will learn what constitutes an enforceable contract and what happens if one party fails to perform their part of the contract. You will learn some of the basic principles of employment law and the rights and responsibilities of employers and employees in the workplace.
On successful completion of the module, students will be able to:
Subject specific:
Students will also acquire a number of skills, in that they will be able to demonstrate:
These are skills which are transferable to other contexts and the development of which will be at least as important as a knowledge and understanding of the legal system for future employability.
This module is worth 30 credits and is, therefore, expected to involve about 300 learning hours including the time spent in class and independent study
The class contact hours will include a mix of content delivery and in-class exercises such as practical case studies. Students will participate in a range of lectures, workshops, interactive activities, individual and group work. Students will be required to carry out group based and independent research using academic sources. The use of active learning methods within sessions is designed to encourage student participation and many opportunities for formative assessment are built into the delivery. Feedback from the formative activities will provide students with many opportunities to refine their understanding and skills prior to summative assessment. will be expected to use formative feedback in future work.
Independent study will be supported by appropriate resources via Moodle. Students will be expected to work both individually and in groups, inluding wider research to support assignments.
The module guide contains the outline of class content. Materials for each lesson (eg. PowerPoint slides for each lecture) are available on the VLE so that students can download them (or make a note of them) in whichever format best suits the students method of note-taking in class. Students are encouraged to spend a short time after each class considering what they have learnt from it and, if necessary, correcting the notes which the student made before the session.
Definitive UNISTATS Category | Indicative Description | Hours |
---|---|---|
Scheduled learning and teaching | Seminars, lectures, group/individual workshops | 128 |
Guided independent learning | Independent study | 172 |
Total (number of credits x 10) | 300 |
A key feature of the teaching and learning delivery of the module is to provide students with ample opportunities to engage with relevant formative assessment prior to summative assessment. Formative exercises will generally mirror the styles of assessment required for summative success in the module, for example, practice tests and sample case studies. It is recognised that a significant proportion of the assessment in this module is by formal time constrained testing which will be supported with additional formative material to allow students to hone their skills in "exam technique" prior to summative assessment. Students will be encourage to engage actively with the feedback they receive on formative assessment so that this is effective as a means of feed forward for the summative elements of assessment.
The following items of make up the summative assessment for the module:
Learning Outcome | Assessment Strategy |
---|---|
Identify how business law is made | Short answer test – to assess knowledge of how business law is made Formative assessment by way of class activities |
Identify and explain the role of legal personnel that may be encountered in running a business | Short answer test – to assess knowledge of the legal personnel Formative assessment by way of class activities |
Understand how business disputes can be resolved inside and outside the court system | Coursework – group presentation Formative assessment by way of class activities |
Explain the basic principles of contract formation | Exam Formative assessment by way of class activities |
Demonstrate an understanding of the scope of legal protection under the Equality Act 2010 and how this impacts on recruitment and selection of staff and the treatment of staff in the workplace | Exam Formative assessment by way of class activities |
Understand the business and legal implications of employing staff permanently compared to using zero hour workers, agency workers or self-employed workers. | Exam Formative assessment by way of class activities |
Description of Assessment | Definitive UNISTATS Categories | Percentage |
---|---|---|
Group work and presentation | Practical exam | 30% |
In class short answer tests x 2 coursework | Written exam 1 | 30% |
Direct theory based questions and short problem solving questions | Written exam 2 | 40% |
Total (to equal 100%) | 100% |
It IS NOT a requirement that any major element of assessment is passed separately in order to achieve an overall pass for the module.
Adams, A. (2016). Law for Business Students, 9th edn. Pearson.