This module introduces students to the nature of business law and commercial awareness contextualised to the professional services sector and contemporary business environments. Indicative content includes:

The nature of business organisation and structures
Health and safety Law
The form of business liability and directors' duties and obligations
Professional negligence
Issues relating to contractual and commercial transactions
An introduction to Employment Rights
The relevance of corporate liability for environmental harm caused by business organisations
Understanding intellectual property issues
Key business skills for legal professionals
The nature of business development
Developing commercial awareness
Effective employability and networking skills

Students are introduced to various areas of business law and business principles. The students will be able to choose a particular area of law for independent research then apply that knowledge into an area of contemporary business. This assessment will improve skills such as independent research, writing for a specific audience and commercial awareness, which are embedded within the module.

The learning strategy for this module is based around students committing a total of 200 hours of activities towards achieving the learning outcomes. These will be split between 39 hours of direct contact with a tutor and 161 hours of directed, guided and self-study, together with preparation and completion of the assessment. Students are encouraged to spend 6-8 hours per week on reading, preparation for workshops, independent research and consolidation of learning. The remaining non-contact hours will be spent on preparation for assessments, including undertaking a formative assessment, and responding to feedback on their draft research project.

Contact will include a mixture of lectures and workshops. Lectures will introduce the students to a new area of business law every week and enhance their commercial awareness, with opportunities for active student engagement with content through including questioning, quizzes and opportunities for discussion. Small groups workshops are focused on consolidation of knowledge and understanding of core content, and to provide academic support for independent research in the areas of business law. Students will be required to participate in a range of learning opportunities which promote independent research on business law, academic writing and commercial awareness. The guided learning will incorporate a mixture of activities, some of which will require group work and electronic interaction. The learning will be facilitated by use of the VLE platform and discussions/interactions between students and tutors.

Students will be expected to be familiar with contemporary discussions in this area of law, and to bring a range of ideas to bear on the discussions. Thus, although there will be a framework of knowledge and understanding, students will be actively, rather than passively, engaged in the process of both learning about, and increasing understanding of, the subject matter. The module will use a blend of teaching methods to enable different styles of learning to be facilitated. The differing methods will also be a platform for the development of essential skills such as intellectual skills, communication skills and problem solving, as well as research, teamwork, negotiation, presentation, referencing, argument, judgement and appropriate use of IT.

Working towards the assessment tasks will be a key element of the learning, and tutors will be available to guide students through the process, and to improve their ability to meet the learning outcomes to a high standard. Assessment will be an integral part of the module. There will be two assessment points and workshops focused on assessment activities will be scheduled into the timetable. Earlier tasks will be shorter and more succinct, enabling fast feedback from the tutors so that students can learn and improve for later assessment tasks. Formative feedback will be provided wherever possible.

1. Identify, select and deploy a range of appropriate resources drawn from Law and Business.
Knowledge and understanding
Enquiry

2. Analyse and evaluate the legal, practical and commercial implications of an aspect of Law for business practices.

Analysis
Enquiry

3. Communicate effectively in writing in a style appropriate to audience and purpose.

Communication

Other textbooks on Evidence available on the OUP Law Trove electronic textbook portal for wider independent reading

Online legal resources accessible via legal databases WestLaw and LexisNexis.

Kelly D, Hammer R and Hendy J, Business Law (4th edn, Routledge 2020)
Marson J and Ferris K, Business Law (6th edn, Oxford University Press 2020)