4Law1006 – Law for Accounts and Finance

Teaching team:Module leader - Miles Hurley

Jerome ChanJustin Brunskell

Before we start…

Law can seem demanding

But….it is not impossible, and can be rewarding

Why are you studying law?

6 simple rules…

Rule 1 – keep calm Rule 2 – be logical

6 simple rules…

Rule 3 - Turn up! Rule 4 – get involved!

6 simple rules…

Rule 5 – read! Rule 6 – turn it

off!!

Resources Module guide is on

Studynet Recommended text

available as “e-book”, via studynet

Other resources via studynet include Justcite, Westlaw, Lawtel, LexisNexis – see link on module site

N.B. “Wikipedia” is not a proper learning resource

Assessment Coursework element (50% of

final mark) – An online MCQ test, and a group work exercise - submitted via studynet.

Exam element – 3 problem questions (out of 6 available). Similar to seminar questions, so use seminars to PRACTICE!!

Answering legal questions

 

Answering legal questions1. Read the entire question carefully.2. Identify the main legal area the question covers

and then all the legal issues raised.3. Select from your knowledge of the law the legal

principles applicable to those legal issues.4. Make a short abbreviated outline of your answer

indicating the order in which you will tackle the various issues, i.e. by separate thematic paragraphs; jot down in abbreviated form the content of each paragraph, i.e. the issue, the applicable principle, the legal authority (case or statute) from which the principle derives, any relevant commentary, and side issues.

Answering legal questions

So…Law – what is it good for? At its most basic level, law exists to protect

members of a society from those who would do them harm. this includes bad businesses as much as it includes criminals.

Law exists to ensure the citizen is kept safe. Consider your own life:- law ensures that you have been educated to

a certain level before arriving at University law ensures the bus you travel to University

on is safe law ensures that food you buy at a

supermarket is safe.

Why do you need to know the law?

In business, law has many functions, e.g.:-

protecting consumers allowing businesses to plan providing employees with rights

Types of Law “criminal law”; - a

public wrong, committed by an individual, who is prosecuted and punished by the state.

“civil law”; basically covers all other aspects of law. Regulates disputes arising from rights & obligations parties have between each other

Sources of Law

Parliament The Courts/Precedent European Union Delegated legislation International Treaties Custom

Source 1 – Parliament •House of Commons•First reading – purely formal•Second reading – critical stage, extensive debate on general principles•Committee stage – MPs amend and tidy bill•Report – the committee reports changes to the House of Commons•Third reading – restricted debate

House of LordsNow the bill does the same again…in the House of Lords.Then the Commons consider any changesRoyal Assent is given

How Parliament makes law

Source 2 - The Courts Some areas of

law are not governed by acts of Parliament.

Judges develop and apply common law – known as “judicial precedent”

Precedent – what is it? A judicial decision which provides a pattern for

subsequent cases to follow Judges are bound by the law of binding

precedent, i.e. they are bound by a decision reached in a previous case

Lower courts must follow higher ones Two factors are crucial to determining whether a

precedent is “binding”:-1. court hierarchy - position in the court hierarchy of

the court which decided the precedent and the position of the court trying the case

2. the facts of the case to be decided come within the scope of the principle of law in the previous decision

It’s Latin time…!!!

stare decisis – “to stand by the decided”.

Ratio decidendi – “reason for the decision”

Obiter dicta – things said “by the way”.

“Ratio Decidendi” – The reason for the decision Donoghue v Stevenson

(1932) The HoL held that a

manufacturer owed a duty of care to the consumer that products are safe.

Followed by …

Grant v Australian Knitting Mills (1936)

The claimant bought some underwear but the material contained a chemical which caused dermatitis. Compensation was awarded based on the precedent set by Donoghue v Stevenson.

Obiter Dicta – things said “by the way”

Hill v Baxter (1958) The defendant driver fell asleep and drove into some people. His conviction for driving offences was upheld as he was at fault for not stopping when he felt drowsy

Judge gave fictional example of being stung by bees while driving, and losing control as an example of a driver not being at fault.

Court Hierarchy Supreme Court

(previously House of Lords) – binds lower courts; avoids binding itself by Practice Statement (Judicial Precedent) 1966 1 WLR

1234. Court of Appeal -

bound by decisions of the House of Lords even if it considers them to be wrong; Young v Bristol Aeroplane Co Ltd [1944] KB 718, provides Court of Appeal (civil division) with 3 exemptions to being bound by its own previous decisions

High Court - bound by the Court of Appeal and the House of Lords; not bound by other High Court decisions.

County and Magistrates Courts - decisions of these courts are not binding.

N.B.: Under the Human Rights Act 1998, English courts must now have regard to decisions of the ECHR

Precedent - Good or Bad? Advantages

Certainty Consistency Efficiency Flexible Detailed Practical

Disadvantages

Inconsistency Uncertainty Delay

Source 3 - The European Union Treaties - primary source of EU law -

need to be enacted (e.g. Tr. of R + ECA 1972)

Regulations – secondary source - “directly applicable” (take effect immediately)

Directives – secondary source - need interpreting by domestic law (usually within a set time)

Decisions of ECJ Decisions Recommendations/opinions (not

binding)

Source 4 - Delegated Legislation Parliament passes an enabling act

giving law-making power to a delegate – e.g. Welwyn & Hatfield Council, Education Secretary. This delegate then draws up detailed regulations

Statutory Instruments Orders in Council Bylaws Professional regulations

Delegated legislation:

Advantages:- Saves time Brings in expertise Flexible – can be changed quickly

Disadvantages:- Accountability – who is making law? Difficult to scrutinise Huge amount of it Is it controlled properly by Parliament and the

courts?

Source 5 – International treaties These are influential but only

become law if Parliament passes an act to incorporate them.

E.g. Human Rights Act derived from European Convention on Human Rights

Source 6 - Custom

Strict rules must be satisfied if a custom is to be recognised.

It has existed since 1189 – “time immemorial”

Must have been exercised continuously and peaceably

Must be reasonable

Summary

Major sources: Parliament, delegated legislation, European Union, Courts

Less significant: custom, international treaties