, Solution Manual For: SM Essentials of Business Law, 7th Edition Jeffrey F. BeattySusan S. SamuelsonPatricia Sanchez Abril, 2022,
9780357634059;
Solution Manual For
SM Essentials of Business Law, 7th Edition Jeffrey F. BeattySusan S. SamuelsonPatricia Sanchez
Abril, 2022, 9780357634059;
Chapter 1: Introduction to Law
Table of Contents
Multiple Choice Questions .......................................................................................................................................... 1
Case Questions ................................................................................................................................................................ 2
Discussion Questions..................................................................................................................................................... 4
Multiple Choice Questions
1. The United States Constitution is among the finest legal accomplishments in the history of the
world. Which of the following influenced Franklin, Jefferson, and the rest of the Founding
Fathers?
A. English common-law principles
B. The Iroquois’ system of federalism
C. Both A and B
D. None of the above
Answer: C. Both English common-law principles and the Iroquois’ system of federalism
shaped the Constitutional framers’ ideas.
2. Which of the following parts of the modern legal system are “borrowed” from medieval
England?
A. Jury trials
B. Special rules for selling land
C. Following precedent
D. All of the above
Answer: D. Countless parts of our modern system originated in Merry Olde England.
3. Union organizers at a hospital wanted to distribute leaflets to potential union members, but
hospital rules prohibited leafleting in areas of patient care, hallways, cafeterias, and any areas
open to the public. The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), a government agency, ruled that
these restrictions violated the law and ordered the hospital to permit the activities in the
cafeteria and coffee shop. What kind of law was it creating?
A. A statute
B. Common law
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, Solution Manual For: Chapter 1: Introduction to Law
C. A constitutional amendment
D. Administrative regulation
Answer: D. The NLRB, as an agency, creates regulations. Congress creates statutes, and
judges shape the common law.
4. If the Congress creates a new statute with the president’s support, it must pass the idea by a
____________ majority vote in the House and the Senate. If the president vetoes a proposed
statute and the Congress wishes to pass it without their support, the idea must pass by a
____________ majority vote in the House and the Senate.
A. simple; simple
B. simple; two-thirds
C. simple; three-fourths
D. two-thirds; three-fourths
Answer: B. More than 50 percent to pass initially (a simple majority), two-thirds if an
override is necessary.
5. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., wrote “An unjust law is no law at all.” As such, “One has … a moral
responsibility to obey unjust laws.” Dr. King’s view is an example of:
A. legal realism.
B. jurisprudence.
C. legal positivism.
D. natural law.
Answer: D. It is an example of the natural law theory of jurisprudence.
Case Questions
1. Lance, an Internet hacker, stole 15,000 credit card numbers and sold them on the black market,
making millions. Police caught Lance, and two legal actions followed, one civil and one criminal.
Who will be responsible for bringing the civil case? What will be the outcome if the jury believes that
Lance was responsible for identity thefts? Who will be responsible for bringing the criminal case?
What will be the outcome if the jury believes that Lance stole the numbers?
Answer: The civil cases will be brought by the victims of identity theft, and the outcome of a
successful case against Lance would be some type of monetary award for damages suffered. The
criminal case will be brought by state prosecutors and the outcome would be imprisonment
for Lance.
2. As The Oculist’s Case indicates, the medical profession has faced large number of lawsuits for
centuries. In Texas, a law provides that, so long as a doctor was not reckless and did not
intentionally harm a patient, recovery for “pain and suffering” is limited to no more than
$750,000. In many other states, no such limit exists. If a patient will suffer a lifetime of pain after a
botched operation, for example, they might recover millions in compensation.
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, Solution Manual For: Chapter 1: Introduction to Law
Which rule seems more sensible to you—the “Texas” rule, or the alternative?
Answer: Answers will vary.
3. You Be the Judge: WRITING PROBLEM Should trials be televised? Here are a few arguments to add to
those in the chapter. You be the judge.
Arguments against Live Television Coverage: We have tried this experiment and it has failed. Trials fall
into two categories: Those that create great public interest and those that do not. No one watches
dull trials, so we do not need to broadcast them. The few that are interesting have all become
circuses. Judges and lawyers have shown that they cannot resist the temptation to play to the
camera. Trials are supposed to be about justice, not entertainment. If a citizen seriously wants to
follow a case, they can do it by reading online news reports or the daily newspaper.
Arguments for Live Television Coverage: It is true that some televised trials have been unseemly affairs,
but that is the fault of the presiding judges, not the media. Indeed, one of the virtues of television
coverage is that millions of people now understand that we have a lot of incompetent people
running our courtrooms. The proper response is to train judges to run a tight trial by prohibiting
grandstanding by lawyers. Access to accurate information is the foundation on which a democracy is
built, and we must not eliminate a source of valuable data just because some judges are ill-trained.
Answer: For most of the “You Be the Judge” writing problems, we provide the case citation and
holding. For this question, of course, there is no definitive answer.
4. Leslie Bergh and his two brothers, Milton and Raymond, formed a partnership to help build a fancy
saloon and dance hall in Evanston, Wyoming. Later, Leslie met with his friend and drinking buddy,
John Mills, and tricked Mills into investing in the saloon. Leslie did not tell Mills that no one else was
investing cash or that the entire enterprise was already bankrupt. Mills mortgaged his home,
invested $150,000 in the saloon—and lost every penny of it. Mills sued all three partners for fraud.
Milton and Raymond defended on the ground that they did not commit the fraud, only Leslie did.
The defendants lost. Was that fair? By holding them liable, what general idea did the court rely on?
What Anglo-Saxon legal custom did the ruling resemble?
Answer: The partners are indeed liable. Bergh v. Mills, 763 P.2d 214 (Wyo. 1988). That is the
essence of a partnership: All partners are liable for the acts of any partner committed in the
partnership’s normal business. This is the general idea of collective responsibility. It relates to
the “tithing” of English legal history, in which all tithing members were legally responsible for the
conduct of the others.
5. The father of an American woman killed in the Paris terrorist attacks sued Twitter, Facebook, and
YouTube, alleging the sites knowingly allow ISIS terrorists to recruit members, raise money, and
spread extremist propaganda. The sites defended themselves by saying that their policies prohibit
terrorist recruitment and that, when alerted to it, they quickly remove offending videos. What type
of lawsuit is this—criminal or civil? What responsibilities, if any, should social media sites have for
the spread of terrorism?
Answer: The case is a civil case, but answers will vary as to the scope of the responsibilities social
media sites should have for the spread of terrorism.
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