Law for business students

638 Pages·2010·9.301 MB·English

by  Alix Adams

SIXTH EDITION L
A
L A W F O R
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‘Its lucidity, structure and ease of use is a sure SIXTH EDITION
winner with business students while the boxed BUSINESS F
cases make the approach to the study of law
not just interesting but comprehensible and O
accessible. The activities and assignments
after each chapter reinforce understanding
R
and provide an opportunity for students to put
STUDENTS
theory into practice.’
L A W F O R

Dr Vick Krishnan,
Principal Lecturer and Subject Leader in Law, B
Regent’s College, London
U
S
I
BUSINE S S
N
E
S
S
STUDENTS
ALIX ADAMS
S
Do you want to give yourself a head start T
From hiring and fi ring, to selling goods or come exam time? U
starting your own company, the world of
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business is inextricably linked to law and
legal regulation. Alix Adams’ lively and Visit www.mylawchamber.co.uk/adams to access E
interactive exercises and fl ashcards designed so
understandable introduction to all aspects of N
that you can test yourself on topics covered in the
law encountered in business will provide you book. There are also legal updates and live weblinks
to help you impress examiners and lecturers with T
with a clear appreciation of the main rules and
knowledge of the latest developments. S
legal principles.
Lecturers: use the site to access resources to
help you teach the subject, including a testbank
of multiple choice questions which can be used
Utilising a host of features in a colourful
to assess students’ progress.

and clear design, Law for Business Students
Worried about getting to grips with cases? SIXTH
encourages you to understand how the law
Case Navigator offers unique online support that helps you EDITION
works in everyday business situations and apply improve your case reading and analysis skills in Business
Law. Cases contained within this resource are highlighted
it to your course, your own experiences and the
throughout this book. The LexisNexis element of Case
world around you. Navigator is only available to those who currently subscribe to
LexisNexis Butterworths online.
A
ALIX ADAMS has over thirty years’ experience CASE D
of teaching law from GCSE to degree and POWERED BY A
postgraduate level and is a qualifi ed barrister. NAVIGATOR M
S
www.pearson-books.com ALIX ADA M S
Cover © Artostock.com/Alamy
CVR_ADAM5455_06_SE_CVR.indd 1 20/1/10 12:49:55
Law for Business Students
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Law for Business
Students
Sixth edition
Alix Adams
LLB (Bristol), LLM (Cardiff), Barrister, Cert. Ed.
Pearson Education Limited
Edinburgh Gate
Harlow
Essex CM20 2JE
England
and Associated Companies throughout the world
Visit us on the World Wide Web at: www.pearsoned.co.uk
First published under the Pitman Publishing imprint in Great Britain in 1996
Second edition published 2000
Third edition published 2003
Fourth edition published 2006
Fifth edition published 2008
Sixth edition published 2010
© Pearson Professional Limited 1996
© Pearson Education Limited 2000, 2010
The right of Alix Adams to be identified as author of this work has been asserted by her in accordance with
the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted
in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without either
the prior written permission of the publisher or a licence permitting restricted copying in the United Kingdom
issued by the Copyright Licensing Agency Ltd, Saffron House, 6–10 Kirby Street, London EC1N 8TS.
All trademarks used herein are the property of their respective owners. The use of any trademark in this text
does not vest in the author or publisher any trademark ownership rights in such trademarks, nor does the
use of such trademarks imply any affiliation with or endorsement of this book by such owners.
Crown Copyright material is reproduced with the permission of the Controller of HMSO and the Queen’s
Printer for Scotland
Law Commission Reports are reproduced under the terms of the Click-Use Licence
ISBN: 978-1-4082-2545-5
British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Public ation Data
Adams, Alix.
Law for business students / Alix Adams. -- 6th ed.
p. cm.
Includes index.
ISBN 978-1-4082-2545-5 (pbk.)
1. Business law--England. I. Title.
KD661.A33 2010
346.4207--dc22
2009047012
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
14 13 12 11 10
Typeset in 9.5/13 pt Frutiger Light by 30
Printed and bound by Rotolito Lombarda, Italy
The publisher’s policy is to use paper manufactured from sustainable forests
For Cherry, with much love and gratitude

Brief contents
Contents ix
Guided tour xx
Acknowledgements xxiv
Preface xxv
Table of cases xxvi
Table of statutes xxxvii
Table of statutory instruments xliv
Table of European and international legislation xlvi
Part 1: Introduction 3
1 Getting started: an introduction to studying law 4
2 How the law is made 16
3 Resolving legal disputes 40
Part 2: Law of contract, agency and sale of goods 61
4 The law of contract: offer and acceptance 62
5 The law of contract: consideration, intention and privity 82
6 The terms of the contract 100

7 Defects in the contract: misrepresentation, mistake, duress and undue 126
influence
8 More defects: illegality and incapacity 152
9 Discharge of the contract and remedies for breach 168
10 The law of agency 198
11 Sale of goods: the contract and its terms 216
12 Sale of goods: transfer of ownership, performance and remedies for breach 234
of contract
Part 3: The law of tort 255
13 Tort liability for defective goods 256
14 Tort liability for defective services 276
15 Tort liability for premises 316
vii
BRIEF CONTENTS
Part 4: Elements of employment law 347
16 Rights at work: the contract of employment and health and safety at work 348
17 Rights at work: protection against discrimination 368
18 Rights at work: protection against dismissal and redundancy 396
Part 5: Introduction to company law 417
19 Business organisation 418
20 Forming a registered company 440
21 Running the company: raising and maintaining capital 454
22 Daily management of the company: functions of directors, secretary
and auditors 466
23 Company meetings and shareholder participation 486
Part 6: General principles of intellectual property law 501
24 Statutory intellectual property protection: copyright, designs, patents and 502
trade marks
25 Common law protection of intellectual property: passing off, malicious 522
falsehood and breach of confidence
Part 7: Study skills 539
26 Study skills, and revision and examination hints 540
Appendix 1: Additional resources 550
Appendix 2: Worth thinking about? and quiz solutions 556
Index 569

viii
Contents
Guided tour xx
Acknowledgements xxiv
Preface xxv
Table of cases xxvi
Table of statutes xxxvii
Table of statutory instruments xliv
Table of European and international legislation xlvi
Part 1: Introduction 3
1 Getting started: an introduction to studying law 4
Introduction 5
What is law? 6
The characteristics of English law 6
Why do we need law? 8
The differences between criminal and civil law 9
Changing the law 10
Essential legal terms 11
Introductory study tips 12

Chapter summary 14
Key terms 14
Quiz 1 15
2 How the law is made 16
Introduction 17
European law 18
Parliament 21
The courts 24
The Human Rights Act 1998 (HRA 1998) 32
ix