This course examines the law and practice of business organizations and the paralegal's potential functions in this area of law. It begins with an examination of basic agency law, followed by a study of the fundamental structure and most important legal doctrines relating to general partnerships, limited partnerships, limited liability companies, small closely-held corporations, and large publicly-traded corporations.

Business law is not, in itself, a field of law. Rather, it is the study of how civil (and sometimes criminal) law affects the operation of businesses. Any study of business is increasingly concerned with the legal environment. This course is designed to provide paralegals with the information they need to work under the supervision of counsel in the legal department of a corporation or to assist attorneys that specialize in providing counsel to businesses. It also provides the general public with knowledge of the legal environment in which businesses operate.

EXPECTATIONS: This is an accelerated course. You will be expected to spend an average of at least 8 hours per week reading and completing assignments. Please note that, barring extenuating circumstances, extensions will not be granted for this online course. This course is the equivalent of at least 50 course contact hours. 70% is the minimum passing score on all tests and assignments for this course.

REQUIRED TEXT: The required text for this course is Basics of Legal Document Preparation, by Robert R. Cummins, published by Delmar Publishers, ISBN #0-8273-6799-6.

ASSIGNMENTS: For each weekly topic you will submit a 50-point short answer/essay assignment covering the topics in your weekly reading. These assignments are submitted to your instructor using the Private Mail tool.

TESTS: You will complete two exams. Each is worth 100 points. The first exam is the fourth week of class; the last exam is due the last week of class. You will submit your exams to your instructor using the Private Mail tool.

BULLETIN BOARD ASSIGNMENTS: You will also post your responses to six class participation assignments. These assignments will be submitted using the Bulletin Board tool and make up your class participation grade. All weekly objectives, assignments, and tests can be found in the Lesson Material tool.

GRADING: Your grade will be based on your completion of six Private Mail assignments, two tests, and class participation. The tests and Private Mail assignments are submitted using the Private Mail tool. You will have the opportunity to engage in "class participation" by using the Bulletin Board tool to respond to the bulletin board assignments throughout the course. Also, participating in the bulletin board assignments will enhance your understanding of the reading material.

Your final grade will be figured as follows: The six assignments are worth 50 points each and comprise 40% of your grade. The two exams are worth 100 points and comprise 40% of your grade. Your participation in class participation assignments comprises 20% of your grade.

WITHDRAWAL POLICY
Students may drop the course with a full tuition refund if written notice is sent to The Center for Legal Studies by email info@legalstudies.com by the Wednesday before class begins. Students may drop the course with a 50% tuition refund if written notice is sent to The Center for Legal Studies by email info@legalstudies.com anytime from the Thursday before the course begins until the first Thursday of class. After the first Thursday of class no refunds will be issued.