Business Law

Course overview
Professor Jing Tan

ACCT3610
Keep quiet

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This session
• We are going to:

• get to know the goals of this course,

• talk about syllabus,
• talk about what law is.

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Course overview

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5
Two languages

Legal language Human language

APPLE INC., a California corporation, • Apple and Samsung are fighting
Plaintiff, on patent.
v.
SAMSUNG ELECTRONICS CO., LTD., A
Korean business entity; SAMSUNG
ELECTRONICS AMERICA, INC., a New York
corporation; SAMSUNG
TELECOMMUNICATIONS AMERICA, LLC,
a Delaware limited liability company,
Defendants.

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Course objective
• By the end of the course, if you analyze a business dispute, you are
able to
• tell which area of business law this dispute is related to;
• tell what legal principle is applied to this dispute;
• tell what general results could be expected;
• explain a legal issue in legal language.

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Course material
• Core materials: Booklet and PPT slides

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Reference material
• Reference book (NOT mandatory):
An Introduction to Hong Kong
Business Law by Vanessa Stott, 5th
edition.

• Library Call no. : KNQ9322.2 .S76

2019

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Syllabus
What are we going to do?
How to get a good grade?

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Class format
• Lectures
• Discussions
• Individual participation
• Group participation

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Grading

2 Quizzes, 1 Final exam 15%, 15%, 50%

In-class writing practice 5%

Assignments & mini quizzes 10%

Participation 5%

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Quizzes & final exam
• Exclusively based on lectures and the booklet.
• Short answer questions.

• Open-book/open note ONLY.

• No online searching tools.
• No contact with others.
• No make-up quizzes.

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Quizzes & final exam
• On canvas/ In person

• Time:
• 6:30pm – 7:30pm; 6:30pm – 8:30pm
• Feb 28, Mar 27; May 8

• Class hours:
• NO new lectures on quiz days
• Q&A

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 Session Month Date Day Topic Remark
1 Jan 31 Wed Course overview & introduction to law
2 Feb 5 Mon Legal system Short survey due
3 Feb 7 Wed Case law system
4 Feb 12 Mon No class Public holiday
1
5 Feb 14 Wed Hong Kong legal system
6 Feb 19 Mon General principles of contract law (1)

Schedule 7
8
Feb
Feb
21
26
Wed
Mon
General principles of contract law (2)
General principles of contract law (3)

as of
9 Feb 28 Wed Quiz 1 6:30pm – 7:30pm
10 Mar 4 Mon General principles of contract law (4)

today
11 Mar 6 Wed General principles of contract law (5) 2
12 Mar 11 Mon General principles of contract law (6)
13 Mar 13 Wed General principles of contract law (7)
14 Mar 18 Mon General principles of contract law (8)
F
15 Mar 20 Wed Legal writing (1)
16 Mar 25 Mon Legal writing (2) In-class writing practice
Subject 17
18
Mar
Apr
27
1
Wed
Mon
Quiz 2
No class
6:30pm – 7:30pm
Mid-term break
to 19
20
Apr
Apr
3
8
Wed
Mon
No class
Law of tort (1)
Mid-term break

change 21
22
Apr
Apr
10
15
Wed
Mon
Law of tort (2)
Law of tort (3)
23 Apr 17 Wed Law of tort (4)
24 Apr 22 Mon Business organizations
25 Apr 24 Wed Employment law
26 Apr 29 Mon Course summary
27 May 1 Wed No class Public holiday 16
Participation
• Activities:
• Discussing cases
• Answering questions
• Corresponding to others

• Be constructive, positive, active.

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A short survey
Find under "Canvas – Home – Assignments"

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Any question?

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What is law?
What is law?
What is law’s function?
Why do we need law?

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What is bun?
Categories of law

• What were the roles of these

people?
• What case was brought to the
court?
• What was the result?

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Conclusion of the judgement
• Involuntary manslaughter Crime

• I refer you to the case of … and Citation of previous cases

cases there they are cited in
1995…

• Sentence to 2 year and a half in Punishment

a house of correction

• A reduced fine Punishment

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Criminal law
• Criminal law is concerned with • E.g., persuading other people to
forbidding certain conduct and commit suicide.
with punishing those who break
the law.
• The conduct which is forbidden
is described as an offence or a • It is a crime.
crime.
• The punishments for those who • The offender is sentenced to
break the law are fines and prisonment and a fine.
imprisonment.

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Categories of law

• What do you feel about it in this

courtroom?
• Why they are here?
• Are they lawyers?

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Differences in the hearing in the court
• The atmosphere was not Not as serious as a murder
intense.

• Property transition Not a crime

• Layman One lawyer

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Civil law
• Civil law deals with the private  A company is a legal person.
rights and obligations of persons,  Not a crime
and in the eyes of the law a person
can be an individual or a company.
• The civil law includes a wide range  The law of contract, the law of
of law. tort, the law of shipping, family
• The general principle of the civil law, property law, etc.
courts is to place the innocent
party in the position he would  Compensation according to the
have been in if the other party had
not defaulted. level of the loss

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Comparison of criminal law and civil law
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zg5ex8WZUao

Criminal Law Civil Law

The behavior An offence/crime A right/obligation
The parties Prosecution v defendant Plaintiff v defendant
The burden of proof Beyond a reasonable doubt Balance of probabilities
The consequences Punishment – fine/imprisonment Compensation for the loss-damages

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Task: describe “law”
• Based on what you have known so far, try to answer the question
“what is law.”

• Use your own words to describe the term of “law.”

• Work in a group.

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How to do the task
• Write down an explanation of “law” on a page in your own words. Use
plain English. Pretend you are teaching it to a new student.
• This should highlight 1) what you understand and 2) what you don’t
quite know.
• Share what you understand and discuss about you don‘t know with you
group.

• After 5 minutes, I will ask each group’s conclusion.

• After class, please submit your answer to canvas.

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Authority
• “Law” is used to describe rules which have two particular
characteristics:
• A law is created by some authority.
• If a law is broken, the authority will uphold or enforce it.

• What kind of authority?

• In the view of social science, authority can be found in a variety of
settings: parental authority, informal authority, bureaucratic authority,
political authority.

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• In Hong Kong:
• Ordinances: created by: HKSAR legislature
• Cases: upheld and enforced by: the Hong Kong courts

• Judiciary
• The courts and all the relevant personnel

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• https://www.hkicpa.org.hk/en/Membership/Registration-and-licensin
g/Members-and-Affiliates

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 Contract Law
Bankruptcy Ordinance
Evidence Ordinance

Mergers & Acquisitions

Employment Law

Criminal Law
Family Law

Property Law

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Review
• Do you know what we are going to learn in this course?
• Are you clear with the syllabus?
• Do you have a sense of law?

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Assignment
• Submit your answer to the question “what is law” based on your
group discussion and your own understanding.

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Next Session
• What is a legal system?

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