Legal Environment

  1. Crimes That Harm Business Versus Crimes Committed by Business

    Which do you believe presents the greatest threat to civil society: A corporation that commits crimes (e.g., murder, environmental crimes, bribery, etc.), or persons who commit crimes that harm businesses (e.g., embezzlement, fraud, larceny, etc.)? Defend your response, using at least one example from current events.

    Guided Response:
    Respond to at least two of your fellow students’ postings in a substantive manner. Some ways to do this include the following, though you may choose a different approach, providing your response is substantive: 
    Review the postings made by your peers. 

    In response to your peers, first identify a non-traditional or “creative” way in which a corporation, as a legal person, might be punished for committing a crime. Then discuss the consequences of implementing that punishment to the example used by your peer.

  2. Product Liability

    After viewing Chinese Imports & Food Safety Video, consider whether U.S. retailers that utilize products or raw ingredients that are imported from China and that are poorly regulated should be liable in tort for injuries to consumers who are harmed by those products. Answer parts 1 and 2 of the following question:

    1. Answer part a or part b

    a. If U.S. companies should not be liable, then they could be legally exempt from tort liability. Discuss the consequences of such a policy to U.S. consumers. 
    b. If the U.S. companies should be liable, then those companies would not be legally exempt from tort liability. Discuss the consequences of such a policy to U.S. businesses. 

2. Regardless of your response to part 1 of this question, assume that U.S. retailers do have legal liability for defective products. What steps could U.S. retailers and manufacturers take, when using products imported from China that would minimize their liability exposure? For example, they could warn consumers about the potential, though speculative, dangers when using products comprised of poorly regulated ingredients or components. Given your strategy, what challenges would exist for U.S. businesses that implemented your strategy?

Assignment

To complete the following assignment, go to this week’s 
Assignment link in the left navigation. 

Negligent Tort

Visit the Consumer Product Safety Division  website. Click on Consumer Safety. Click on Recalls. Choose one product that has been recalled.

  1. Describe the product subject to recall, including the recall date, recall number, and the reason for the recall.
  2. Analyze whether the manufacturer would be liable for negligence if the product had not been recalled and had caused harm to a consumer.
  3. Discusses the following in relation to the product recall::
    1. Duty of Care
    2. Standard of Care
    3. Breach of the Duty of Care
    4. Actual Causation
    5. Proximate Causation
    6. Actual Injury
    7. Defenses to Negligence
  4. Analyze and apply a relevant consumer protection statute identified under “Consumer Protection” in Chapter 8 of your text in conjunction with the product recall that you have identified.Must address the topic of the paper with critical thought.

Submit a four- to five-page paper (not including title and reference pages). Your paper must be formatted according to APA style as outlined in the approved APA style guide and must cite at least three scholarly sources in addition to the textbook.