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16: The Legal and Regulatory Environment of Business

  • Page ID
    3970
    • Anonymous
    • LibreTexts

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    • 16.1: Law and the Legal System
      This page defines the law's functions, stressing its role in ensuring predictability and fairness in the U.S. legal system. It highlights the complexities and challenges of laws through a metaphor, addressing past inequalities while emphasizing the legal system's purpose in maintaining peace, shaping moral standards, promoting social justice, and ensuring equality. Ultimately, it affirms the law's importance in facilitating social order and individual freedoms.
    • 16.2: Criminal versus Civil Law
      This page explains the differences between criminal and civil law, emphasizing tort law. It presents a case involving a college student and a roommate facing legal issues from negligence and assault. The text distinguishes between civil actions initiated by individuals for compensation with a lower burden of proof, and criminal actions pursued by the government requiring proof beyond a reasonable doubt.
    • 16.3: Negligence Torts
      This page examines negligence and contract law in employment relationships. It outlines the elements of a negligence claim and explicates employer liability through respondeat superior. The text emphasizes the financial implications of business liability and the extensive, costly litigation process, highlighting the inadequacy of median awards to cover legal fees.
    • 16.4: Product Liability
      This page explores product liability, focusing on negligence, strict liability, and breach of warranty. It explains the types of manufacturer's negligence and the concept of strict liability, which does not require proof of negligence. The text includes a case study of a defective ladder, detailing warranties and agency law's role in liability.
    • 16.5: Some Principles of Public Law
      This page contrasts private and public law, focusing on areas like criminal and constitutional law. It uses cigarette littering to illustrate public law, detailing relevant legislation such as the Clean Indoor Air Act and California's littering laws, which address health and environmental issues. The text highlights how these laws regulate behavior and mitigate market failures and externalities, demonstrating the multifaceted statutory responses at local, state, and federal levels.
    • 16.6: Cases and Problems
      This page discusses exploring a career in law, reflecting on interests and discouragements. It addresses the product liability debate and the adequacy of legal systems regarding responsibility for injuries. Additionally, it proposes a team-building exercise focused on debating smoking regulations in workplaces and highlights global negotiation challenges with businesses in China. Each section promotes critical thinking and collaboration.


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