Business Law Report: UK Legal System, Organizations, and Problems

This report provides a comprehensive overview of business law within the UK legal system. It begins with an introduction to business law and its application to commercial transactions, differentiating between civil and criminal law, and then explores the English legal system's structure, including the roles of the Parliament and the unwritten constitution. The report delves into primary and secondary sources of law, such as case law, legislation, and legal encyclopedias. It outlines the roles of government in law-making, the key legislations, regulations, and standards affecting businesses, including employment law, consumer rights, competition law, and copyright law. The report also analyzes the potential implications of these laws on businesses. Furthermore, it explores different types of business organizations, their advantages and disadvantages, and how they are managed and funded. The report concludes by discussing legal solutions to various business problems, offering a thorough understanding of the legal landscape for businesses in the UK.

Business Law

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
SECTION 1......................................................................................................................................1
Task 1..........................................................................................................................................1
TASK 2.......................................................................................................................................6
SECTION 2......................................................................................................................................9
CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................10
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................12

INTRODUCTION
In legal terms, business law is a part of the legal system in a country which is applicable
on commercial transactions done by organizations (Ball, 2015). These statues are applied from
the time an entity is established till the time of its dissolution. It is included in civil law and all
the cases are dealt in courts other than those for criminal proceedings. In this report, legal system
in UK along with the difference between civil and criminal law, sources of statues, roles of
government in law-making, key legislation, regulations, and standards, analysis of potential
implication have been discussed. Furthermore, types of business organizations together with
their advantages and disadvantages, and how they are managed and funded. Also, legal solutions
to different problems have been explained.
SECTION 1
Task 1
1. English legal system prevails in United Kingdom which comprises of different branches viz.
Civil and criminal. There are legal provisions for each such part of the legal system. It has been
used as a foundation in many different countries. English legal system extends to whole England
and Wales. In UK, there is main legislation which is UK parliament. Any decisions taken by the
highest authority is applied within the country without any question. There is unwritten
constitution in the country which has not been completely codified. Laws have been enacted on
the portion which is available in written form in the constitution. Furthermore, there are various
sources which can be used for gaining the knowledge about the laws prevailing in UK legal
system (Berger-Walliser and Shrivastava, 2014).
Civil law is the branch of legal system which is associated with the issues connected with
individuals or organizations. The plaintiff is under the burden of proof to provide evidence to
prove the case. Some of the examples are landlord or tenant disputes, divorce proceedings, child
custody etc. The remedies available are compensation for injuries and damages. On the contrary,
Criminal law deals with the matters of criminal nature for which legal punishment is provided.
The burden of proof is on the government whether federal or state. Its examples are theft,
robbery, trafficking etc. The possible punishment are given in the ways of imprisonment and
fines.
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Civil law Criminal law
Crime is in respect of public wrong This is generally known as private wrong
Government is work as prosecutor Injured person presents as plaintiff
2. Source of law
Sources are the ways through which information about a particular topic can be gathered.
There are many such options through which the UK legal system can be known by any person.
These are divided into two categories viz. Primary and secondary which have been elaborated
below:
 Primary sources: These are the immediate, first-hand data extracted in a direct manner by
interacting with the people. There is no interpretation of the information and it is
absolutely original. Some of these for UK legal system are as follows:
Case law- It includes decisions or judgements made by courts and tribunals which are
presented in the form of law reports comprising facts, issues and decision as well as legal
principles. These are the foundation on the basis of which the whole case is solved. It is reliable
source which is formed by following doctrine of judicial precedents. According to this principle,
the judgements passed earlier are used in deciding the future cases. A higher court is bound to
follow the decisions of inferior courts without any question (Besley, 2015).
Legislation- UK does not have a single, written constitution and the one which it has is
partly written and wholly un-codified. The Parliament has passed laws for the parts that have
been penned down. The statues extend to all the parts of UK. The highest authority to make laws
is with the Parliament and once a decision is passed by the Westminster Parliament, it cannot be
challenged in any courts because of the supremacy it has.
European laws- There are laws which are formed by European Union because UK is a
member of this association. There are directives which are required to be followed by all those
countries having its membership. The laws are related to trade restrictions, taxes and other
statues which are connected with carrying the business from one country to another.
 Secondary sources: The original information which is interpreted at a later stage are
included in this. This covers documents comprising of information that has already been
used by some authors. The secondary sources of UK law are provided below:
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Legal encyclopaedias- There are encyclopaedias which are used widely in UK for
knowing the meaning of legal terms which can be used for the benefit (Forrer and Katsos, 2015).
Halsbury's Laws of England and Wales is the most reliable encyclopaedia which is considered by
large number of people for having legal information. It is presented in comprehensive manner
which has been drawn with the consultation of the leading lawyers. Furthermore, it is arranged
alphabetically by subject so that any term can be found easily.
Parliamentary publications- This source is about the requirement and need to implement
a legislation. In other words, the background of a particular law is discussed to understand its
application in a particular area of law. These are available in the form of command papers,
debates of parliament which highlight the key points about a specific statue. Along with this, the
papers presented by House of Commons and House of Lords.
Non-parliamentary publications- These are the reports and consultation papers provided
by government departments and agencies that can be seen by general public. These are posted on
the official websites of the respective departments.
Law commission- There is voluntary body which was set up in the year 1965 and carries
the work independently. The main activity is to review the application of legislation and make
recommendations on the basis of the outcomes so gathered. Furthermore, the findings are then
discussed with interested parties and legal experts for making any changes. This is done to
ensure that laws are fair, simple and cost-effective (Gordon, Pohl and Bouchard, 2014).
Law journals- There are journals which are published at fixed intervals. These can be for
some of the specific areas or it can cover more than one part of the legal system. Practitioners
use the journals for ascertaining the knowledge about amendments that have taken place in order
to update the law. There are arguments by the people who are involved with legal matters.
Textbooks- There are books which published at the level that can be understood by
students studying the subject of law. It is considered as one of the most reliable sources which
contain extensive information.
Personnel in the legal system
Barrister: A barrister is a kind of professional in common law jurisdictions. It mostly
particularize in courtroom support and litigation.
Solicitors: A lawyer is a legal professional who generally deals with most of the judicial
matters in some jurisdictions.
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Judge: Judge is the person who hold highest authority and have power to give decisions.
3. The role of government is vital in law-making which is categorised into the following roles: Executive role- This role provides power to the government to oversee the enforcement
of all the statues which have been implemented by it. This branch is responsible for the
administration of the state. It undertakes the activities of execution or enforcement of the
law. It comprises the Queen, Prime Minister and other cabinet ministers who have been
given the positions to keep check on the proper application of various laws applicable to
individuals as well as organizations. Legislative role- There are two houses of parliament viz. House of Commons and House
of Lords who have the authority to present bill(s) with a view to get it converted into act.
They are functions involved in this are creation, amendment and examine the laws for
making them more effective. This helps in analysing the need to introduce any new law.
Legislation passed by the parliament governs activities and rights of individuals living in
the society. There are punishments as well as penalties for any wrong doings.
 Judiciary role- This role is associated with determining the working of the courts and
other judiciary bodies. It identifies the number of tribunals and courts in order to decide
whether to establish or not. It is useful in providing decisions on the time. Furthermore,
the judges should be there in required number for passing the judgements. This is the
responsibility and role of the authorities involved in this branch to appoint judges as per
the requirements (Means, 2014).
There are two types of laws that prevail in UK and they are common and statutory law
which have been discussed below:
Common law- According to this, the judgements passed earlier are used for deciding the
cases in future. There is no scope of developing new laws. The assumption is that, situations
remain unchanged so there is no requirement to use any new law. Any amendments in the
existing one is treated as supplementary to the prior decisions.
Statutory law- It is totally opposite to common law and is the principles or rules which
govern the conduct of individuals living in a particular place. It is available in written form
which and a bill when passed through number of stages becomes a law which is applicable
throughout the country.
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4. Key legislations, regulations and standards
The legal system of UK has variety of legislation, regulations and standards which should
be abide by new business in order to carry the activities lawfully. These have been discussed
below: Employment law- The legal provisions regulate rights and duties of employers and
employees within the organization. The motive is to protect rights of the workforce by
giving them good working, minimum wage, leave including paid, maternity and
paternity, termination etc. When a person is appointed in a company, a contract of
employment is executed between these parties by including the clauses as per the legal
provisions. Consumer rights- The laws are applicable on the sale of goods or services. Customers are
the asset whose demand and requirements should be met (Murray, 2014). The profit is
earned by selling products to them. According to legal provisions of consumer laws,
every buyer has certain rights such as replacement, discount or refund by the seller in
case of defective goods or if the terms and conditions have been breached. Consumer
Rights Act, 2015 has been enacted to help the business organizations carry trade in a fair
manner. It also includes Sale and Supply of Goods Act, 1954 for governing the matters
related to products or services.
 Competition law- The reason for designing this law is to prevent business practices and
help bringing fair competition within the organization and market. It provides for anti-
competitive agreements which are formed to compete in a fair and healthy way. It is
executed between two entities operating in the same market or industry. Furthermore, it
prevents companies from using their position to create market dominance for gaining
huge market share leading to unfair competition.
5. Analysis of potential implications of law on a business
The above-mentioned laws are required to follow by every business which has
established newly. However, there are some other statues which are equally important and
should be abide by entities without making any contravention. These are as follows:
Copyright law- The act related to Copyright, Designs and Patents have been implemented
in order to deal with the matters to give control of these assets for using them. These hold huge
value which should be registered as soon as a copyright is created. It helps in protecting the
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exclusive rights of the company and can be used by the owner only. In case of any breach with
the laws governing intellectual property right, the entity may have to lose its identity which is
going to affect the market position adversely (Murray, 2015).
Contract law- A contract is an agreement which is enforceable at law. It is formed
between two parties by including terms and conditions as provided by the parties. There are
some features such as there should be at least two parties, consideration, legal relations, etc.
Furthermore, there are clauses decided by the individuals involved. Apart from this, a buyer and
seller form contract between them for selling the goods or services. This is a trust factor by
relying which dealings are completed and in no case, there should be any contravention.
Employment law- Employees are significant for every sort of businesses as they are the
one who have responsibilities to complete the tasks and functions in order to fulfil the objectives.
Candidates look for companies which provide legal rights to its workforce. It is way of giving
them value and make them feel worthy of their capabilities. None of the provisions of
employment laws should be breached as this can increase employee turnover resulting in
inefficiency among the business practices.
6. Critical reflection of UK legal system by focusing on strengths and weaknesses
UK legal system is based on English laws which extends to all the parts of UK. The
supreme authority is given to Parliament who makes statues with a view to implement in the
country. There are legal principles applicable on cases and matters and these are consistency and
certainty which provides for all laws to be precise and in predictable manner. The strength is that
UK legal system is one of the oldest and authentic legal systems which has acted as a base for
different nations to make their laws. On the other hand, weakness is that it needs to update some
of the areas of law. For example, it is still following Companies Act, 2006 whereas other
countries have already amended these laws (Rohlin and Ross, 2016).
TASK 2
1. Different types and classification of business organisations
Business Organisations are the organisations which are formed in order to provide goods
and services to customers and also to earn profit with the help of those products and services.
The business organisations are also divided into following two parts in Private Sector and
Public Sector Organisations.
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Private Sector Organisations are those organisations which are owned and controlled
by private individuals and the main motive of which is to earn profit. The description of various
types of private sector organisations are also provided as under:
Sole Proprietorship: In the following type of business, there is only a single owner of
the business liable to incur all profits and losses made by the company. In the legal structure of
this organisation, there is no need to register it under any Act but the functioning is overlooked
by government of the respective country.
Partnership: In the following type of business organisation, two or more people starts
some business with the motive of earning profit. The profits and losses are shared in between
them according to the share of their capital in the business (Rutledge, 2014). The liability of
individual working under this type of business organisation is unlimited. The legal structure of
these organisations are overlooked by Partnership Act, 1890.
Limited Liability Partnership: These companies are also started with two or more
people in which the liabilities of partners is limited to the extent to which they had contributed in
the share capital of the business. The decisions made in this form of business are made with the
concern of all other partners consent. The legal structure of this type of business organisations is
overlooked by Limited Liability Partnerships Act, 2000 (Mouzas and Henneberg, 2015).
Public Sector Companies are those companies which are owned and controlled totally
by the government whether central, state or local, partially by centrally government or by state
government. The description of various type of public sector organisations are being provided as
under:
Departmental Undertakings: The following type of business organisation are controlled
by one of the departments or ministry of government of a country. For example, Railways
Industry of UK, so the legal structure of this organisation is decided by Department of Transport
in UK.
Public Corporation/Statutory Corporation: These type of organisations are made due
to passing of some special Act of Legislation or Parliament and also the dissolution of that firm
is also made at the time of achievement of goals and objectives for which it was made. For
example, the National Employment Savings Trust which have been made in order to contribute
to workplace pension scheme for employees. The legal structure of this corporation is controlled
with the help of Pensions Act, 2008 (Scheuer, 2015).
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Government Companies: These are the companies in which 51% share of the company
are in the hands of government whether central, state or local government of a country. National
Nuclear Laboratory is the company which is controlled by Central Government of UK so the
legal structure of the company is decided by central government.
2. Critical evaluation of advantages and disadvantages of different legal structures
Classification of Private Sector Organisation
Advantages and Disadvantages of Sole Proprietorship Legal Structure
Advantages Disadvantages
 The individual is sole owner of all the
profits made by the business.
 It is related to unlimited liability of
owner as his personal asset will also be
sold in case of loss not covered from
business assets.
Advantages and Disadvantages of Partnership Legal Structure
Advantages Disadvantages
 Here, the burden of work and finance is
removed as it is divided among many
individuals.
 Due to more partners, it causes delay in
decisions which makes business to lose
some important opportunities (Trad and
Kalpić, 2016).
Advantages and Disadvantages of Limited Liability Partnership Legal Structure
Advantages Disadvantages
 The liability of partners is limited to the
extent of their contribution of capital in
business.
 There are risks of disagreement and
fiction in between partners impacting
negatively on working of organisations.
Classification of Public Sector Organisation
Advantages and Disadvantages of Departmental Undertakings Legal Structure
Advantages Disadvantages
 The main advantage of this method is
related to its easy formation as not
 Due to government interferences, it
cause possible delay in work.
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much legal formalities are needed to be
fulfilled (Wilson and Sipe, 2014).
Advantages and Disadvantages of Public Corporation/Statutory Corporation Legal
Structure
Advantages Disadvantages
 Independence provided in the working
is covered under its advantage as there
is no interferences so no delay in work
performance.
 The structure of these organisations are
rigid and can only be changed by
making amendments in the Act.
Advantages and Disadvantages of Government Companies Legal Structure
Advantages Disadvantages
 Government Companies are separate
legal entity so they can manager their
affairs at their own.
 The working of these organisations is
not smooth because of interference of
political people.
3. Management and funding of public as well as private sectors
Funding and Managing of Private Sector Organisations
Sole Proprietorship: This organisation is funded and managed in many ways such as use
of personal capital, bank loan, taking money from friends, family or relatives and from some
other sources as well. The work is also managed by the sole owner (Terry and et. Al., 2015).
Partnership: The following organisation is managed and funded with the help of share
capital of different partners and sometimes the use of bank loan is also done to make effective
running of business. The work is managed by partners or by hiring managers.
Limited Liability Partnership: These type of organisations are also managed and
funded by the money of partners which they are investing in business. The business operations
are managed by partners or hiring of managers.
Funding and Managing of Public Sector Organisations
Departmental Undertakings: The funding of this organisation is done by annual budget
passed in Parliament or State Legislation. Work is managed by hiring people for different posts.
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Statutory Corporation/ Public Corporation: The funds for this type of business comes
from government approved loans. The work is managed by directors as they hire managers to
complete the different tasks in an organisation.
Government Companies: The funding is done by using government shareholding and
private shareholding. Along with this, work is managed by filling the posts with different
employees according to the needs and demands of business.
SECTION 2
(a). Explanatory Memorandum
Explanatory Memorandum for legal requirement under
Health and Safety Act 1974
The notice for preparing any memorandum is to regulate a form of legislative structure
comprising the statues related to health and safety act which is designed as per the main agenda
of the company and to ensure that each employee of provided adequate safety at the workplace.
It has been provided in Section18 that one of the prime objectives of the business entity is to
provide security in terms of health and cater their basic requirements for maintaining the safety
and health of people working in the organisation. There must be a clause about notifying the
workforce to specify the limit of the work that should be done by every individual along with
this, the average number of incidents that can occur. This comes under the responsibilities of
the top management who holds the power to make decisions and to inform all the people
working in the organisation. Furthermore, training sessions should be provided to the workforce
for operating the machineries and other equipments effectively and efficiently. There should be
all the facilities such as clean drinking water, proper food, ventilation system etc. for assisting
the employees to work without compromising with these facilities. Along with this, there
should be all the medical facilities in case of emergencies. The company has hired individuals
for helping in such circumstances. Principles, rules and guidelines are formulated and
implemented to for meeting the requirements of health and safety of the employees.
(b). In this case, Charlotte is appointed for the position of accounts clerk in the finance
department of the company. Meanwhile, she has been approached by Daisy to help her out in
bookkeeping in free time. There arise an issues whether Charlotte can provide the help to her
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friend Daisy. According to the laws of employment, there exists a contract between two parties
which are accepted by them. If any changes are to be introduced then it should receive the
consent of involved parties. In the first instance, a person is not allowed to work in two firms at
the same time. By considering this case, it can be seen that no such restrictions are provided.
Hence, Charlotte can work with both the entities (Wachter and Mittelstadt, 2019).
(c). In this case, Nicholas Jakcob is an electrician having two adult children. He has always lived
in Newcastle and worked for about three years for Regents Vision. However, it has underwent to
reconstructing resulting in closure of Newcastle Branch. Therefore, he was offered new job in
London but Jakcob refused to move to London.
According to the Employment laws, every employee should be given a prior notice of
termination so that he/she can find new job. The restructuring of the company was for a
temporary period also none of the employee was terminated by the organisation. But, the
company has also not allowed its staff to switch the job. Jakcob has denied all the offers of new
jobs. So, the conclusion is that both the parties are at fault and none of them holds the right for
claim.
CONCLUSION
From the above report, it has been concluded that business law is important for carrying
the activities lawfully by abiding by applicable statues and regulations. One must have the
knowledge of English legal system along with different sources to gather to information about
legal matters and provisions. There are laws such as employment, competition, contract,
consumer etc. which impact the business of organisations. Furthermore, variety of entities have
been discussed in this report to understand the legal structure to judge the advantages and
disadvantages for choosing the most suitable one to start the operations and make profit.
Followed by this, there are legal solutions to every disputes which should be taken into account
for resolving the issues in an amicable and prompt manner.
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