International Business Law Take-Home Exam: Questions and Answers

This article provides questions and answers for the International Business Law take-home exam. It covers topics such as the English Legal System, legal aspects of business formation, and contractual agreements. It also includes a case study on nuisance claims and advice on setting up a private company limited by shares.

Module Number: BAM4011
Module Name: International Business Law
Assessment
Number
2
Assessment Type
(and weighting)
Take-Home Exam - 50%
(48 Hours)
Assessment
Submission Date
Exam Paper Release Date & Time: Saturday 09 April 2022 at 09:00 am
Submission Cut-off Date & Time: Monday 11 April 2022 at 09:00am
Learning Outcomes Assessed:
LO1 Explain the relevance and nature of business law to individuals and business
LO2 Describe the legal aspects of business formation
LO3 Define the legal principles in relation to the formation of contractual agreements
Exam Questions: 120-minute open book exam
The exam will be in 3 parts:
 Part A – multiple-choice questions (10 marks in total and 2 marks per
question). There is one correct answer per question (suggested time 10
minutes)
 Part B – short form questions – answer all questions (30 marks in total for this
section) (suggested time 50 minutes) Part C – longer form questions – three in total – answer all questions. Each
worth 20 marks (60 marks in total suggested time 60 minutes, 20 minutes per
question - includes reading time)
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Part A: Multiple Choice Questions. Answer all questions.
1.The English Legal System refers to the law in which of the following countries?
a. England only
b. England and Wales
c. England, Scotland, and Wales
d. England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland
(2 mark)
2. Which of the following is NOT a source of English law?
a. Statute
b. Case law
c. Orders in Council
d. Orders of the European Commission
(2 marks)
3. Which of the following correctly describes the elements for a legally enforceable
contract:
a. Offer and acceptance
b. Offer, acceptance, and consideration
c. Offer, acceptance, consideration, and intention to form legal relations
d. Offer, acceptance, and intention to form legal relations
(2 marks)
4. What is the minimum age permitted for a person to be appointed as a director?
a. 16
b. 18
c. 21
d. No minimum age
(2 marks)
5. How many persons are needed to form a UK company?
a. Two
b. One
c. Three
d. Four
(2 marks)
(Total 10 marks)
Part B: Short answer questions. Answer all questions.
1. Describe the principal characteristics of the legal system of England and Wales,
inclusive of court Structure, the judiciary, lawyers, and lay participation in the system
(magistrates, juries and tribunal members).

There is a common law system in England and Wales which combines passing of
legislation but also creation of precedents through case law. These laws are formed through
passing of legislation by parliament consisting of 'Monarch', which is the House of Commons
and the House of Lords.
(6 marks)
What is a Tort? Narrate in detail Tort of negligence and breach of duty of care.
Any instance of harmful behaviour such as physical attack on one person and
interference with one's possessions or with the use and enjoyment of one's land, economic
interest such as honour, reputation, etc.
Tort of negligence signifies the failure of discharge where a person breaches his duty
of care which he owed to another due to which the other person has suffered some hard injury
(Taylor,and Elphick,2019). Breach of Duty is another type of condition for liability in
negligence where plaintiff must prove that the breach of duty or to take care has been done by
the defendant.
(6 marks)
‘What is law?’ and `why does the law exist?’ Discuss and explain some of the main
theories relating to ‘Sources of Law’.
A rule made by the government for the conduct of people in the society and business
and if they do not obey the law and order in the society then punishments are given based on
system of rules made in the form of law.
Law exists to maintain law and order in the society and for giving justice to people who have
been victim of breach of any law or duty.
Theory is very valuable as it helps the practitioner to make sense of the work that is
performed or encountered by them. There are four main theories in law that are Natural,
Positive, Marxist and Realist law theories
(6 marks)
What are the three elements which a Claimant must establish in a negligence claim?
Three elements that a Claimant must establish in negligence claim which are : Defendant owing duty of care – It is a legal obligation which is imposed on an
individual and requires coherence to standard of reasonable care while performing
any acts that can harm others.
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 Defendant who is breaching the contract – It is violation of any of agreed terms and
conditions of a binding contract. Suffering an injury or loss or damages as a result – It refers to personal injury that
generally damages the body leading to accidents, falls, hits, weapons, etc.
(6 marks)
Illustrate and explain the rules that apply to judicial precedent and statutory
interpretation; by citing prominent legal principal based on, ‘Ratio Decidendi’ ‘Obiter
Dicta’
The rules that apply to judicial precedent and statutory interpretation considers the
following principles :
Ratio decidendi – It is for the purpose of deciding problem before judge which may be
defined as principles of law formed by judge and also a point in a case that determines the
judgement (Giles,Errickson,Márquez-Grant,2022). It basically means reason for deciding a
case in judicial context.
Obiter dicta – It is observation that is made by a judge but are not necessary for reaching on
decision. The Latin phrase means 'that which is said in passing' and refers to passage in
judicial decision which is not that necessary in decision making before the court.
(6 marks)
(Total 30 marks)
Part C: long-form questions. Answer all questions.
Question 1 (20 marks):
‘Bits and Bobs’ is a scrapyard owned by Fred Dust. The scrapyard sits on a sizeable plot of
land, extending to over 5 acres. Some of the scrapyard lands share a boundary with
neighbouring houses. A number of homeowners have complained and threatened legal
action in relation to various aspects of Fred’s business.

Consider the following complaints and advise the property owners whether or not they will
have a claim in nuisance against Fred for the issues complained of.
Complaint 1: Mrs Khan
Mrs Khan’s bungalow lies close to the west boundary fence of the scrapyard. That edge of
the scrapyard is overgrown with trees and weeds. Mrs Khan has complained that some of
the tree roots are affecting her patio and causing the patio slabs to crack. She has also
noticed some cracks appearing on the rear wall of her property and has been advised by a
local builder that the foundations are being affected by the tree roots.
Complaint 2: Dave and Molly
Dave and Molly rent a house to the south side of the scrapyard. They have complained
about two issues. One is the smell and the other is the noise. Dave works night shifts as a
paramedic. He is home by day and often sleeping. He has complained that the noise from
the scrapyard keeps him awake as the workers play loud music and the machinery which
sorts the scrap makes constant loud noise. No one else has complained about the
noise. Molly has complained about the smells from the scrapyard. There is a large pile of
landfill waste which creates a foul odour and an incinerator that smells. She cannot enjoy
her garden at the weekends and cannot open the windows, even in summer.
Complaint 3: Novel Orchids Ltd
Jenny owns a plant nursery, ‘Novel Orchids Ltd’. Her nursery shares a western boundary
with ‘Bits and Bobs’. Jenny has complained that her rarest Peruvian Orchids have died as
a result of the smoke and toxic fumes from the incinerator.
Advise Mrs Khan, Dave and Molly and Novel Orchids Ltd of possible claims in nuisance
against Fred.
They can be advised to make a public nuisance claim where they can prove that the
scrapyard is unreasonable as it damages the property.
When a person does an act or is guilty of illegal omission that cause common injury, danger
or annoyance to public who occupies property in the vicinity or necessarily causes injury,
obstruction, danger and annoyance to person or people in general. In order to profess the
relief in the matter is private nuisance, the claimant must be involved in the monetary value
of the land, the value of the land within the interest of the claimant should be an
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representation for the enjoyment of the land, to claim the nuisance there should be deferred
damages in middle of the enjoyment (Agyenim-Boateng,2021).
The court of law will consider the presented claims from the suitor if the case will
provide these following elements :
 The surroundings of the neighbourhood.
 Duration of living in that environment.
 Sensitivity of the matter referred in front of the court.
 The spleen or distress experienced by the party.
In the case of Malone v Laskey, the claimant was injured by the engine of the side property
which was cut loose , and fell on her lavatory, the claim she made was declined because of
the facts , she was not the owner of the house.
In the above matter it is advised to file nuisance complaint by the various claimants which are
involved in the case. The tribunal will look further into the matter and provide the claims to
the individuals which are affected by the nuisance of scrap land (Willett,2020).
In the case of Barr v Biffa, the case was concerned by the environmental malice , the odours
from the landfill , this case demonstrate the commercial liabilities toward the civil citizens.
The reasonableness is relevant scope for he case , the court appealed that for the detriment
which is caused by the landfill should be supposedly have permit.
In the case of Smith v Scott Ors, there was a government acquired property in the
neighbourhood of the claimant , the landlord who was precise with the knowledge put a
troublesome family in the homeless shelter , which was in the neighbourhood of the claimant
, the court held , usually the landlord is not liable for the acts of the tenants.
Question 2 (20 marks):
Magic Mug Ltd designs and manufacture mugs. They have recently produced 2,000 mugs
bearing a slogan saying ‘We support the NHS’ and a rainbow logo. On 15 July at 2.00 pm,
Magic Mug Ltd posted on their social media account that the NHS mugs are for sale at 75p
per mug.

Betty sees the social media post while using her phone, travelling on a train. She e-mails
Magic Mug Ltd at 3.00 pm on 1st July asking if she could buy 500 mugs at 50p
each. Magic Mug Ltd see that e-mail but do not reply.
A national café chain, Tasty Treats, wants to buy all 2,000 mugs to use in their cafes to
show their support for NHS workers. They send one of their drivers that afternoon as soon
as they see the social media post. The van driver arrives at Magic Mug depot at 4.30 pm
and they pay for the 2,000 mugs and the driver takes them away.
At 5.00 pm Betty visits the Magic Mug Ltd depot and tries to pay £250 for the 500 mugs.
Magic Mug’s sales manager explains that they have just been sold and they have none left.
Betty claims she had a contract with them made before they sold them to Tasty Treats.
Advise Magic Mug on whether an enforceable contract was made with Betty.
Communication's the essential component of the contracts law , for a contract to be
enforced, a willingness to communicate with the followed party is crucial for the completion
of terms, be it acceptance of the clauses of the agreement or revocation of the terms of the
agreements mode of connection is diligent to follow, The imperative details of a binding
contracts require an offer and the acceptance to offer , simplifying the definition of an legal
statue enforceable agreement also consists of competent sound mind parties. It can be put
through verbally or in the written format , an contract can be prescribed through express or
implied mannerism. An small instance example of oral contractual obligation is ordering
something in the restaurant, counterfeited instance of an written contracts , is dealings of
property, the point of initiation of an contract is the offer, the combined parties are called
offerer and offeree, the acceptance of the offer is the second key to unlock , the acceptance
can be attained by various means of communication be it , newspaper , telephone, letter or
e-mail (Parsa,Abbasi,RAHMANI,and Jafari,2019).
Now beginning with the above comprehensive, where Betty is under the impression
that she made contractual legal liabilities with the company magic mugs, while the describe
company has already sold the product (mugs) to a cafe chain named Tasty Treats.
Advising magic mugs that as they never reverted back to Betty's email, the acceptance of the
offer was not carried out by the magic mugs , hence, there was no arising obligations between
the two , whereas the company is free to sale the products to whosoever they please.
Question 3 (20 marks):
Shreena and Gita wish to run a business buying and selling organic vegetables. They have
decided to set up a private company limited by shares and are thinking of calling their
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company ‘VegRus’. They will be the subscribers and the first directors of the company.
They have already found premises but the owner is insisting that a contract to lease the
premises is signed immediately, despite the fact the company will not be registered for
about four weeks.
Advise Shreena and Gita what documents will have to be delivered to the Registrar of
Companies before a certificate of incorporation of the company is issued, any restrictions
on choice of the name of the company, and any liabilities they may personally incur if the
lease is signed before the company is incorporated.
The major statues which are determined by the business law of the united kingdom,
also prescribes the determination on how to set up a company (Grant,2021). There is no
requirement of the owning the citizenship of The UK for attaining the registration of the
company
Informative required Documents , for incorporating a company in united kingdom :
 Association memorandum is a small document which confirms that the owners of
the company have an intention for the formation for the organization and have an
intent for being the authoritative member of the association.
 Choosing A Company Name, any organization which is about to set up on the land of
queen , will require a name of the company , they can choose any name as long a it
does not belong to any other registered company, it should be a sensitive word with
the false expressions.
 Having an address of the office ,. the organization setting up most certainly need a
physical address for the company. The address will make the company available
publicly people can apply to the impressions of the company as well.
 Appointment of the association , a company indeed , is an organization which will
have members in it . It require the member's designated as Directors, Employees ,
Company Secretary.
In the above scenario Shreena and Gita are planning on opening their company , the
following requirements must be fulfilled by them.
(Total 60 marks)

REFERENCES
Taylor, A. and Elphick, L., 2019. Discrimination Law and the Language of Torts in
the UK Supreme Court. Available at SSRN 3402216.
Agyenim-Boateng, C., 2021. Exploring the motivations of using companies registered in tax
havens to invest in UK housing market. Journal of Economic Studies.
Giles, S.B., Errickson, D. and Márquez-Grant, N., 2022. A retrospective comparative study to
evaluate the reliability of post-mortem interval sources in UK and US medico-legal
death investigations. Science & Justice, 62(2), pp.246-261.
Grant, J., 2021. Indecent exposure: a serious ‘nuisance’offence. Women's History
Review, 30(7), pp.1219-1224.
Parsa, E., Abbasi, M., RAHMANI, M.H. and Jafari, M.H., 2019. Study on Legal Nature of
Liability Arising from Negligence in Prenatal Diagnosis: Experience from UK.
Willett, C., 2020. Control of Price Related Terms in Standard Form Contracts in the UK:
Regulating Prices and Charges in the UK: Information Versus Substance, General
Clauses Versus Rules Developed by Regulators. In Control of Price Related Terms
in Standard Form Contracts (pp. 723-758). Springer, Cham.
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