Ethics & Business Law

Thinking about Law
1. A citizen may think of ‘law’
as a set of rules which he must obey.
2. A lawyer who practices ‘ law’ may think as a
vocation.
3. A legislator may look at ‘law’
as a something created by him.
4. A judge may think of ‘law’
as a guiding principles to be applied in
making decisions.

Law
 Law includes all those rules and
regulations which regulate our relations
with other individuals and with the state.
 Law means a set of rules recognized and
enforced by the state to control and regulate
the conduct of people, to protect their
property and contractual rights with a view
to securing justice, peaceful living and social
security.

Law
 According to Salmond,
“Law is the body of principles recognized and
applied by the state in the administration of
justice”.
 According to Holland,
“Law is a rule of external human actions
enforced by the sovereign political authority”.

Business Law
 “Business Law is the body of law that
applies to the rights, relations and conducts
of persons & businesses engaged in
commerce, merchandising, trade and
sales”.
 It is mostly known as Commercial or
Mercantile Law.

Nature/Characteristics of Law
 A Law will present the following features –
(i) It is a set of rules.
(ii) It regulates the human conduct.
(iii) It is created & maintained by the state.
(iv) It has certain amount of stability, fixity &
uniformity.
(v) It is backed by coercive authority.
(vi) It’s violation leads to punishment.

Rule of Law
 The Rule of Law is the concept of equality of all persons
before law.
 Dicey told about THREE (3) Rule of Law –
(i) “No man is punishable or can be lawfully made to
suffer in body or goods except for a distinct breach of law
established in the ordinary legal manner before the
ordinary court”.
(ii) “No man is above law”.
(iii) “The Rule of Law is the result of statutes & judicial
decisions determining the rights of private persons”.

Scope of Business Law
The Scope of Commercial Law is wide.
It includes the laws relating to –
1. The Contract Act – 1872
2. The Sale of Goods Act – 1930
3. The Negotiable Instrument Act – 1881
4. The Partnership Act – 1932
5. The Company Act – 1994
6. The Insurance Act - 1938

Scope of Business Law
7. The Insolvency Act – 1997
8. The Carriage of Goods Act –
(a) The Common Carriers Act – 1865
(b) The Railway Act – 1890
(c) The Carriage of Goods by Sea Act – 1925
(d) The Carriage of Goods by Air Act - 1934