Role_and_Functions_of_Law_Paper

Role and Functions of Law Paper University of Phoenix August 28, 2012 Role and Functions of Law Paper In this paper I will define the functions and role of law in business and society as well as provide an example of how functions and role of law are applied in my current job. First, the definition of law in my own words can be described as a set of regulations and principles that are used by a country to be applied to people based on social behavioral reasoning and serve as ethical standards in order to promote justice to the society. These regulations and principles are established by the government of a country and practiced by lawyers and judges in a court. One of the mayor functions of law is to intervene when the rights of an individual have been violated and to provide a solution based on fairness. As law plays an important part in the society and business, regulations and rules have to be carefully studied and examined before implemented. Legal decisions can become very complex to make as they affect social communities, politics and business. Law can be classified in the following categories; the criminal law which deals with enforces penalty for committed crimes, civil law which takes care of solving family issues, disagreements with contracts and property ownership. Substantive law establishes the rights and duties that are necessary to prove a legal case while the procedural law handles the creation of procedures that should be followed within the substantive law. The private law gets involved with issues between individuals and between companies, and the public law handles issues between the state and individuals. In addition to bringing justice to society, other important functions of law involves the protection of human rights and to maintain control in social, business and politics issues by setting standard of behaviors and rules as well as ethical guidelines with the best interest of looking after the security of the individual or entity. The government is in charge of incorporating these functions into our society and companies by using its authority to not only to maintain an order, but to enforce it whenever a rule or regulation is broken by imposing a penalty that is already established. The objective of these functions is to maintain peace and a safe environment among individuals and to promote integrity within our community. Imagine a country where law did not exist. There would not be any sense of direction or orientation for individuals in a community and there would not be any control for human behavior. Law has different roles in our community with the objective of maintaining order and to establish what is correct and incorrect and to ensure compliance of duties and obligations in the society and businesses. The three different roles in today’s law are criminal and civil law, substantive and procedural law, and public and private law. As described above, each one of these is committed to assist individuals, government, and business by providing rules to protect the rights and to establish what is the most appropriate action to follow. In business, it is important to recognize that the law also serves as an important catalyst for commerce by promoting good faith dealing among merchants and consumers and giving some degree of reliability that can be considered in business planning and commercial transactions (Melvin, 2011). Making legal decisions in business requires a lot of analysis and support from a legal advisor to provide the correct action that will reduce liability to the company without affecting the business image and operations. In my current job, there is a full-time lawyer who is in charge of providing legal advice and provides recommendations regarding documents that need to be signed such as contracts, internal policies to be revised before approval and published, and other employee related documents. It is important to consider the examination of internal policies and regulations in a business to ensure they are in compliance with the established labor laws from the government. These policies must be written and available to all employees who are responsible for reviewing and understanding each one of them. Orientation is also important from the employer to ensure employees follow these policies and should obtain a signed document that confirms they have been read and understood. This practice must be implemented in a consistent manner in case there is a violation of any policy already explained in order to apply the necessary disciplinary action to the employee and thus the employer is safeguarding the company’s reputation and compliance with the law. It also works for the benefit of each employee in cases when they find the employer has failed to comply with a policy and should file a claim. This rule also applies when managing contracts with external clients or suppliers when dealing with services or products provided and which must be established in a written document to facilitate the negotiation and with a signature that confirms an agreement between the parties involved. In general, from the creation of a business and throughout the process of its operations, legal functions and role play an important part as they must work in a parallel manner with the objective of assisting and improving business operations and reduce the liability. Also, it will assist managers and executives with the decision-making process when legal decisions are required to be made as to establish what is correct or incorrect regarding employee matters as well as matters with the local government agencies, suppliers, and contractors. References Colander, D.C. (2010). Macroeconomics (8th ed.) Ch. 11, 13 &14. González, J. (2012, February 16). Indomable avance de la economía subterránea. El Nuevo Día. Retrieved from: http://www.elnuevodia.com Junta de Planificación. (2011). Informe Económico al Gobernador 2010. Retrieved from: http://www.jp.gobierno.pr/