Lectures, videos, analysis of legal issues, discussion of legal cases, case assignments, and group activities
1. Introduction to the field of law and the administration of justice
2. Sources of Canadian and British Columbia law
a. distinction between private and public law
b. Acts of the Canadian Parliament and the provincial legislatures (emphasis on British Columbia)
c. Canadian Constitution and the Charter of Rights and Freedoms
d. subordinate legislation including by-laws and government regulations
e. the court process, case law, and judicial precedent
3. Law of Torts
a. general principles including liability insurance, vicarious liability and alternative compensation schemes
b. intentional torts including assault, battery, false imprisonment, trespass, and invasion of privacy
c. business torts including nuisance, occupier's liability, defamation, injurious falsehood, deceit, unlawful interference with economic relations, and conspiracy
d. the tort of negligence including duty of care, breach of standard of care, causation of harm, and the available defences
4. Law of Contracts
a. nature of a contract
b. elements of a contract
i. mutual agreement (offer, acceptance, and invitation to treat)
ii. capacity of the parties
iii. legal consideration and its exceptions
iv. the concept of privity of contract and its exceptions including assignment
c. terms of a contract
i. express terms and implied terms
ii. conditions and warranties
d. grounds of impeachment
i. misrepresentation
ii. incapacity
iii. illegality
iv. mistake
v. duress, undue influence, and unconscionable transactions
e. discharge and breach of contract
i. discharge by performance
ii. discharge by agreement
iii. discharge by frustration
iv. discharge by breach
f. contractual remedies
i. damages
ii. specific performance
iii. injunctions
5. Law of Real Property
a. possessory interests in land – fee simple, life estate, leasehold
b. ownership of land – joint tenancy, tenancy-in-common, strata ownership
c. non-possessory interests in land – easements and restrictive covenants
d. leases
e. land registration systems
f. sale agreements – real property
g. mortgages – rights and remedies
The student will be able to:
- describe the structure of the Canadian legal system
- know the basic principles of common law and statute law that apply to most business situations. Although the course is not designed to make the student a lawyer, it will provide the student with sufficient background and sophistication to understand circumstances that require a lawyer
- recognize the main aspects of the Canadian judicial system including the sources of law, the levels and roles of courts in the judicial system, and the basic elements of the court process
- set out the difference between common law, statute law, administrative law, and criminal law
- explain the methods by which legal precedents are established and applied
- know in detail the law of contracts, its principles and application to various business situations
- describe the basic principles of tort law and identify many of the important common law torts, especially torts that arise in the business context
- summarize the different interests and legal mechanisms relating to real property
- relate legal principles to economic, political and social situations that may arise in the business world.
| Term examinations (2) | 30 - 40% |
| Mid-semester examination | 20 - 25% |
| Final examination | 25 - 35% |
| Class participation and/or assignments and/or quizzes | 5 - 10% |
McInnes, Kerr, VanDuzer and Carmody, Managing the Law: The Legal Aspects of Doing Business
Latest Edition, (Toronto: Pearson Education Canada).
(or such other textbook as agreed upon by the Business Law Instructors)
Additional cases and readings decided by the Instructor.
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