Law for Business

RET11 Law for Business

Autumn 2024

  • Topics

    The course concerns company law, labour law, intellectual property law, monetary and credit law, the law of mortgages and pledges, and insolvency and bankruptcy law.

    Topics in company law include different ways of organising economic activity, with the main emphasis on limited liability companies. The following topics will be dealt with: the formation of companies, the different functions and competencies of corporate bodies, the responsibilities of the board of directors, dividend / company distributions, capital reductions/increases and the dissolution of companies.

    Topics in labour law will cover individual labour law and key tie-ins with collective labour law.

    Individual labour law. The following topics will be dealt with: requirements relating to the recruitment process, the effect of appointments, dismissal with or without notice and the employer’s managerial prerogative.

    Collective labour law. The following topics will be dealt with: the right to organise, collective agreements, industrial action / the right to strike / labour peace guarantee.

    Topics in intellectual property law include copyright, design right, patent law and trademark and domain name law, with particular emphasis on copyright and trademark and domain name law.

    The following topics will be discussed in more detail in copyright: exclusive rights, neighbouring rights, limitations on copyright, transfer of copyright, copyright on the internet and sanctions in the event of copyright infringement

    The following topics will be discussed in more detail in trademark law:trademark and business name rights, the functions of trademark and domain name law, the formation of trademarks and business names, the requirement for distinctive features and the risk of confusion, the transfer of trademark and domain name rights, infringements of trademark and domain name rights and and sanctions for breaches of trademark and domain law.

    Monetary and credit law concerns rules on monetary claims in the form of compensation claims and credit claims. The following topics will be discussed in more detail: the establishment of monetary claims, transfer of monetary claims, extinguishment of monetary claims and default of payment of monetary claims.

    The law of mortgages and pledges covers the rules for personal furnishing of security for physical or legal persons, and the rules for the furnishing of security through the establishment of exclusive rights to specific capital assets (real security).

    The following topics will be discussed in more detail: guarantee agreements in general (establishment, maturity, lapse and objections against creditors), contracts of suretyship with financial institutions (parties, establishment of agreements, expiry of suretyships, reduction and lapse of suretyship contracts), establishment of lien, pledgeable assets, legal protection and priority lien, rules on lien during the security period and rules on foreclosure.

    Insolvency and bankruptcy law covers rules on the enforcement of claims, debt settlement proceedings and liquidation/bankruptcy.

    The following topics will be discussed in more detail: rules concerning the basis for enforcement and attachment in connection with individual debt collection, rules on voluntary and compulsory debt settlement proceedings and rules on insolvency, creditors in insolvency, the debtor’s position, the bodies of the estate, voidance, contractual obligations and rules on the order of priority in connection with liquidation/bankruptcy.

  • Learning outcome

    Knowledge

    • Understand key topics of importance to the management of modern enterprises within the fields of labour law, company law, intellectual property law, monetary and credit law, the law of mortgages and pledges and insolvency and bankruptcy law.

    Skills

    • Capable of keeping up to date on topics relating to the specified areas of law.
    • Capable of identifying and taking a stance on fundamental issues encountered in the specified areas of law, based on recognised legal methodology.

    General competence

    • Understand important legal issues in the relevant areas and find a relevant legal basis for solving legal problems using legal methodology and analysis in the role of manager.
    • Capable of communicating views on legal issues in the relevant areas of law in an expedient way.
    • Capable of reflecting on ethical aspects of the issues at hand.

  • Teaching

    Lectures, seminars, assignment courses and two compulsory assignments for submission.

  • Recommended prerequisites

    RET1 or the equivalent is recommended to ensure that the students are familiar with the legal system and basic legal methodology.

  • Credit reduction due to overlap

    RET11 overlaps with RET13 Company law and cannot be combined with RET13.

  • Compulsory Activity

    Students must submit two compulsory assignments that must be approved in order to fulfill compulsory activities (work requirements)

  • Assessment

    4 hours individual written digital school exam.

    An assessment in RET11 will not be organised in the the non-teaching semester. As of autumn 2023, only mandatory bachelor courses with an individual assessment will have an assessment in the non-teaching semester. This only applies to students with a valid course approval. The retake options that apply at all times are decided by the dean for the bachelor program and will be published in the course description.

  • Grading Scale

    A-F

  • Permitted Support Material

    Calculator

    One bilingual dictionary (Category I)

    The following written support material in category II:

    • Norwegian Laws.
    • Collections of laws with or without regulations (but without comments).
    • Special editions of laws with or without regulations (but without comments).
    • Collections of economic laws without comments.

    All in accordance with Supplementary provisions to the Regulations for Full-time Study Programmes at the Norwegian School of Economics Ch.4 Permitted support material https://www.nhh.no/en/for-students/regulations/https://www.nhh.no/en/for-students/regulations/and https://www.nhh.no/en/for-students/examinations/examination-support-materials/https://www.nhh.no/en/for-students/examinations/examination-support-materials/

Overview

ECTS Credits
7.5
Teaching language
Norwegian
Semester

Spring. Will be given spring 2024.

Course responsible

Associate Professor Knut Martin Tande, Faculty of Law, University of Bergen.