Law and Business
Lawyers practicing in business-related areas - corporate, real estate, tax , commercial litigation , many areas of government regulation and representation aspects of nonprofit - need to acquire skills in three areas: basic analysis ( accounting, finance , economics ) , a recognition of the transactions, and the relevant fields of law. Most HLS courses fall into the latter area , and a major benefit of all these courses is that indirectly expose students to the principles of the first two areas . For example , a course of Law Competition will improve understanding of mergers , vertical distribution agreements , and other market interactions . Most of what follows refers to courses business law itself. For basic analysis , is very useful to have methods of analysis for lawyers ( especially if your background in economics and finance is not strong ) and / or courses at other schools HLS or Accounting , Finance and Economics.In addition, occasional deals , such as real estate law - are often best seen after taking some courses in business law - are very useful in the second zone. Negotiating Courses can be of help regarding the two analyzes and operations, as well as being of much value. Students interested in Law and Business Studies should also consider the joint JD / MBA from Harvard Business School.
Basic courses in Business Law
Companies , taken by many students interested in pursuing a career in business law or not, is the basis on which all advanced courses related corporate and build , and is a recommended course prerequisite or related areas ( such as taxation of Corporations ) .Corporations are taught by professors Clark , Coates , Jesse Fried, Hanson , Kraakman , Ramseyer , and Subramanian Spamann in different years. Content, approach and method can vary significantly from one teacher to teacher and over time. Students should read the course descriptions before choosing what kind of business to take.
Similarly, all students interested in business law (and most other legal careers ) Taxes should have another course taken by many HLS students . Taxation pervades almost all areas of legal practice ( including litigation , family law , and nonprofit counseling ) , literacy for tax is minimal but significant requirement. Taxation is taught by teachers Halperin , Kaplow , Shay and Warren in different years , as well as visitors with a variety of backgrounds . The content, approach and focus of these courses are quite similar.
For students intending to become " corporate lawyers " or even general business law , Corporations and Taxation facilitate understanding of the legal regime in which most business is conducted in the U.S. , The rules that determine that corporations and corporate officers can be held liable , the ways in which companies can respond to the regulation or litigation , and how various business activities are taxed (although the latter requires more advanced as well ) . Such understanding is valuable to litigants , government officials , prosecutors , criminal defense attorneys and lawyers, legal services , not to mention the investment bankers, business consultants and entrepreneurs. In addition , nonprofit organizations (such as Harvard ) are organized as "corporations" .
Students who do not have accounting experience and contemplate the career of corporate law must take Introduction to accounting and corporate financial reporting should also consider taking Financial Statement Analysis and Valuation . We also recommend Business Strategy for Lawyers , which introduces the fundamentals of corporate strategy and competitive and through both lectures and case discussions of business schools. Topics include competitive advantage , industry analysis , strategic positioning , incentives , corporate control , firm scope , network externalities and innovation. The school also offers a course module , quick look at the issues of Corporate Finance , designed for students with no experience in corporate finance .
Practical business law varies considerably , even for " corporate lawyers " , and because the practice is becoming more specialized and changing , it is difficult to give sound guidance on what courses to take more than the basics . Students should know that many large law firms expect lawyers who spend most of their time on corporate transactional work (this is what " corporate lawyer " refers to most professionals). Some companies specialize in deals involving large public companies , often heavily regulated industry and always subject to numerous federal securities regulation . For this reason, the Securities Regulation is often a useful course for students to take. Other firms primarily represent private companies or family property for which tax or estate planning often takes precedence over securities law . Proprietary companies offer full time, internal legal practice involves transactional work and a variety of broader issues " corporate " legal , ranging from employment and labor law intellectual property law to commercial law .
Students often do not know what type of practice will end the search. Students who think law firms or Wall Street investment banks may want more exposure to corporate finance , securities and international issues . Students who think in a law firm in a regional city large or mid-size , or an eventual move " in-house" , they may want more exposure to the corresponding courses to industrial disputes , credit relationships and transactions real estate . As noted , general tools such as accounting , business planning , contract negotiation , evaluation and basic statistics lawyers can benefit a wide range of practice areas . Analytical Methods The course is an effective way for students to start building these skills.
HLS offers a variety of courses in business law and related , and students must remain flexible to take advantage of the special courses offered by visiting faculty and in the winter period . Consultation with teachers to teach in the field should be helpful in making course selections .
Intermediate Courses Corporate Law
Two important intermediate courses are based on companies are Securities Regulation and Corporate Finance .
Securities Regulation covers federal laws and regulations governing the public offering , sale and trading of shares and other securities , and therefore is the main course focuses on initial public offerings ( IPOs) and the process of " make public " . The focus is mostly legal and regulatory , covering the Securities Act of 1933 , important elements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 , and a summary of the work of the SEC .
Corporate Finance offers a theory - and oriented policy approach and advanced the important issues affecting businesses, including valuation ( discounting , net present value , uncertainty ) , the rights of holders of debt " ( protection clauses , conflict debt / equity) , Bankruptcy and hostile acquisitions. examines advanced topics in business law from a perspective informed by economics and finance. the two main areas of law covered in the course are: (1 ) relations between corporate debt holders and shareholders in both solvent company in bankruptcy , and (2 ) mergers and acquisitions. both issues are addressed in some depth , but not with the same care they would receive in entire courses dedicated to corporate reorganizations and mergers and acquisitions. Moreover , corporate finance provides a brief introduction to financial economics , including the discount, risk analysis , pricing models, and market efficiency . This course is not a substitute for financial economics as taught at MIT Sloan and Harvard Kennedy School , however.
In addition , a number of courses that may be of interest to students of business law that offers all Harvard University . The Business School , for example , regularly offers courses on valuation and finance theory .
Corporate Honors
Each of the following courses cover advanced areas of the law firm with more detail, using a variety of methodological approaches . Not all courses listed below are offered every year.
Mergers and Acquisitions are taught in different years ( and under slightly different titles ) by Professors Clark , Coates and Subramanian , covers topics of corporate and securities law relating to mergers and acquisitions of large public companies , including the Williams Act , the proxy rules , state law , and important forms of private order ( such as poison pills , blocks and earnouts ) . It also affects basics of accounting, tax and competence relevant to a lawyer working in this type of transaction. The approach is more practical than theoretical , and the focus is on the law, not finance. In addition , Advanced Negotiation : Offers , offered by Professor Subramanian jointly between HLS and HBS , negotiation focuses on general corporate agreements . Law and Finance Venture, taught by Professor Jesse Fried, is financial contracts , governance and fiduciary litigation ups service backed by venture capital. Antitrust law is another valuable resource in this area.
Corporate Theory , offered from time to time by the teacher and the teacher Elhauge Kraakman , Corporate Control , sometimes offered by Professor Coates and Law and Politics Corporate and Capital Markets, offered by Professor Bebchuk , are similar discussion / seminars reading that focus on advanced research, current or ongoing corporate legal matters . Topics vary from year to year but have included policy analysis of takeover law , limited liability , property and financial structure .
Corporate Governance of the public company , which provides in some years by Professor Roe , focuses on current academic thinking on corporate governance and ownership , divided among several topics.
Regulation of Financial Institutions bag covers regulation , insurance regulation and banking regulation.
Regulation of Financial Markets , which offers in a few years by Professors Jackson and Scott , covers the stock markets and commodities and government agencies responsible for regulating them . Corporate Finance should be taken before the seminar .
Advanced Tax Courses
Corporations Tax is the advanced tax course taken most often by those who go beyond the Basic Tax Course , which is a prerequisite. Corporations is highly recommended as preparation. The course covers federal tax issues involved in the organization , operation, and restructuring of U.S. companies , whether structured as corporations , partnerships or limited liability companies . And with the increasingly multinational nature of business activities , international tax has become increasingly valuable .
For those interested in being itself tax attorneys , you should certainly take all courses offered tax (or almost) , including trusts and estates . Furthermore, the practice of most taxes is in connection with other activities , so it is important to take other courses such as corporations and some more advanced offerings as well as courses in other areas ranging from pensions and family law to the Law of Nonprofit Organizations .
Bankruptcy and Commercial Law Courses
Much practice of business law , whether focused on companies or real estate deals , is very concerned with the financing . Consequently, it is useful to know the law on relations between creditors and debtors , in the ordinary course of business ( Commercial Law: Secured Transactions, taught by Professor Kaufman ) and in the case of business problems (bankruptcy ; corporate reorganizations ) .
Courses on International Law / Comparative
In addition to the core courses focused on the U.S., and the core described above , HLS offers several courses on advanced topics in corporate law or comparative international dimension .
International Finance examines the policies and regulations affecting the banking and cross-border securities in the three major markets, the United States, European Union and Japan.
International Trade Law examines explores the fundamental principles of international trade , the relationship between trade and the environment and internal resources to violations of international trade.
International Competition Law Competition Policy explores outside the U.S.
Seminars
HLS offers a range of research , writing and discussion seminars on a variety of corporate law and related topics. Here is a sampling of the seminars and reading groups more directly related to corporate law : Regulation Capital Markets Group reading; Comparative Corporate Governance , Corporate Governance Reading Group , Current Issues in Executive Compensation and Corporate Governance Seminar , Current Issues in Seminar financial Regulation; Dispute Systems Design Seminar , International Finance Seminar , Law and Economics Seminar , Law , Markets and Religions Seminar , Seminar on the Finance Act and the start-ups , and Fiscal Policy Seminar .
Note that not all seminars and reading groups mentioned are offered each year.
clinical Offerings
Business and Nonprofit Clinic
The Transactional Law Clinic involves students in a wide range of transactional legal work including entity formation , drafting contracts , sales and acquisitions , licensing , corporate governance , intellectual property issues , and many other types of legal practices based experiences in practice. Students are immersed in a context of applied learning , advice and transactional representation of clients under the supervision of an experienced physician. Registration for the clinic is through the Clinical Program .
Associated Areas of Law
Students interested in a possible career in corporate law should , as previously suggested , seriously consider one or more of the following related areas .
Negotiation / Mediation / ADR: A common and important feature of business professionals is to represent their clients in negotiations and agreements with other companies , employees and agencies. Students interested in corporate law should consider taking one of the many courses and workshops in negotiations HLS and related fields.
Employment / Labor Law, Intellectual Property Law and International Law (especially finance and trade ) are areas of law that all business lawyers are from time to time, and that some corporate lawyers routinely face . Students prepare for a business law firm should consider taking one or more courses of representation in these fields.
Law and Economics : Economic analysis is also an important element of business. Students should consider taking one or more of the offerings of the law and economics at the Faculty of Law, as taught by Professor Shavell . Moreover, as noted , seminars are oriented economy HLS devote attention to research topics and related companies .
Law / Regulation Regulator: While not limited to issues of company law, administrative law is valuable for corporate lawyers find that it is important to understand the processes of law-making and implementation by the executive and independent regulatory agencies , as well as the forces that influence how they behave regulators and the evolution of regulatory regimes .
Career Academies
Students wishing to pursue an academic career in this area should consider combining course work previously discussed opportunities for significant research and writing .
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