Welcome to the Business Law Program

Our flagship course, Introduction to Law, exposes students to the basic substantive and procedural areas of the American legal system. In addition to identifying legal issues relevant to business practices, students develop critical thinking and legal reasoning skills, practice analytical writing, examine the relationship between Law and Ethics and learn to use Law to examine broader economic, social and political issues. Students also may select from upper-level course offerings in contract drafting and negotiation, business enterprises and law relevant to the CPA examination.

Law in the time of Business Scandal

Recent business scandals have heightened public expectations of managerial accountability for unethical and sometimes criminal activity. Even the expense and distraction associated with more mundane legal problems is alarming. When a breach of contract case can result in a multi-billion dollar settlement, believing legal questions remain on the sidelines (or in the footnotes) shows poor and possibly fatal judgment. Simultaneously, with this rising expectation for legal compliance is an existing complex and rapidly growing body of laws and regulations on which not even a single practitioner with years of experience can hope for expertise. As educators and trained lawyers, we ask ourselves how best, then to teach our students. How do we create a curriculum in a climate where on the one hand, managers are expected to assiduously follow the rules, but on the other hand there are more rules than there are hours in a lifetime to comprehend? Our Program Objectives reflect our best thoughts on how to mediate this conflict.

Faculty

The Isenberg School is extremely fortunate to have Business Law Program faculty with tremendous individual strengths and who collectively cover an impressive range of legal expertise. Together, we teach over 700 students per year. Among our group of one full-time and four part-time lecturers, are experts in areas including: advertising regulation, business/commercial law, trust and estates, patent law, medical malpractice/personal injury, consumer protection, and securities law. Each Program member has a minimum of ten years of legal practice, earned a terminal degree in his/her field and is admitted to practice law in at least one jurisdiction.

Contact Us

If you have further questions or would like advice concerning a pre-law school course of study, email Jennifer Taub, Coordinator of the Business Law Program at jtaub@som.umass.edu.