ØKB3120 Business law

Contents and structure

The course provides and introduction to legal methods and selected general topics and issues in private legal matters. The course gives the students insight into the general legal framework for running a business and the laws that are of particular importance for organizing and executing such activities. The subject is divided into the follow areas of law:

• The legal scientific method; the meta-norms for finding and applying legal rules, where methodology is also considered as the science of legal sources. Acquire and understand knowledge about the process behind finding legal rules, interpreting legal rules, as well as grasping how legal rules may be applied in specific, given situations.
• Contract law: entering into contracts, interpreting contracts, and invalidity, with a special emphasis on if and when a binding agreement has been made.
• The law of sales, with an emphasis on breaches, the concept of deficiency, and the effects of contract violations such as remedies for defective performance, especially the right of cancellation.
• Law of negotiable instruments. Principles for creating, transferring, insuring, and dismissing pecuniary claims. General provisions for delayed payment, counter claims, retirement of debt, and limitations are covered her. The law of debenture's rules for negotiable debt instruments and simple debt instruments are covered superficially.
• Mortgage and security. Discussion of the Mortgage Act, with a summary of the various groups of mortgaged objects and the various means of mortgaging property and groups of mortgaged property. Rules on the right to create mortgages for businesses and security for unpaid purchases are thoroughly covered. Key regulations in the Land Registration Act are discussed.
• Corporate Law: the Companies Act. The main emphasis is on establishing an AS, the composition of the board and amendments, and representation in company relationships: power of attorney/proxy. Business' relationships to creditors and government authorities.
• Insolvency law: the principles for managing a bankruptcy. A collective presentation of bankruptcy law, both procedural and material, with a special emphasis on the conditions for bankruptcy and the rules for setting aside a debtor's fraudulent preferences, what is included in an estate, and access to withdrawing or adding to a bankrupt estate. Separate debt recovery proceedings are covered superficially.
• Economic criminality: criminal economic conditions and transactions and the conditions for criminal liability. The Criminal Code 2005, Chapters 27, 30, and 31(receiving stolen property and whitewashing, simple and aggravated economic betrayal, simple and aggravated corruption, protection of creditors (under a bankruptcy), accounting violations, simple and aggravated tax evasion).

Learning Outcome

Knowledge

The student:

• Has acquired a good understanding of and summary over the applicable legal rules within the various areas of law covered by the course (see Course Contents above).
• Has knowledge of general legal methods and exercise techniques.
• Knows the basic principles for entering into and interpreting contracts.
• Knows basic sales laws and the effects of a beach contract.
• Knows principles for creating, transferring, insuring, and dismissing pecuniary claims.
• Knows the legal rules that are particularly important for running a private business, including laws that affect the internal organization of enterprises and the regulations for an enterprise's relationships to customers, other creditors, and government authorities.
• Knows the conditions and principles for managing a bankruptcy.
• Knows about economic criminality and transactions and the conditions for criminal liability.

 Skills

The student:

• Can recognizes or identify legal issues and questions of jurisprudence within the field's various areas.
• Can use applicable laws to solve and answer the legal questions that are raised with the various areas covered by the course.
• Can formulate a legal problem based on actual legal rules for a specific, practical case.
• Can communicate core legal information by using relevant technical expressions.

General Qualifications

The student:

• Is able to understand and participate in discussions concerning legal issues. The student can substantiate and defend given legal solutions, but at the same time can see that a given problem may have alternative solutions.
• Is able to acquire new knowledge within the legal areas specified above, and can acquire knowledge about other legal areas that have significance for accounting and auditing work.
• Can reflect upon ethical problems within the relevant areas of law.
• Can see the subject in a larger social perspective.

Entry requirements

None

Recommended previous knowledge

None

Teaching methods

Lectures and guidance on exercises provided during the lectures. The students must also learn about the subject area through independent study. It will be an advantage for the students to form their own study groups in order to solve exercises and discuss relevant issues.

Compulsory learning activities

None

Assessment

Written exam, 4 hours, 100%

National exam

Grade Scale A-F

Examination support material

Norwegian Laws

More about examination support material

Course reductions

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• ØKB2002FORØK - Forretnings- og arbeidsrett - Reduction: 2 studypoints
• ØKB052 - Forretningsjus - Reduction: 2 studypoints
• SA021 - Rettslære I - Reduction: 2 studypoints
• Ø15 - Rettslære I - Reduction: 2 studypoints
• ØKB2030 - Rettslære II - Reduction: 7.5 studypoints
• ØKB030 - Rettslære II (revisor) - Reduction: 7.5 studypoints
• ØAF103 - Rettsvitskap 1 - Reduction: 7.5 studypoints