Students are expected to gain a general understanding of business law (together with a perception of its several implications in their future professional careers) and to acquire a basic legal vocabulary.

No previous knowledge of law or legal methods is required for this course.

The course will briefly consider theories of the firm and their role in the economy. It will cover basic principles of contracts, business organizations (notably partnerships and corporations), the incorporation of an enterprise and how the corporate structure works. We will then consider management and control of the corporation, actions of directors, and, generally, the distribution of powers between directors and shareholders within the corporate framework and how ESG/sustainability principles and AI could have a significant impact corporate management. General concepts on agency, financial markets, antitrust, and intellectual property regulation (such as patent and trademarks) will be addressed and explained in class, as they are primarily intended to provide the students with the basic tools needed to understand the relationships between law and enterprises. In light of the growing internationalization of modern financial markets and business relationships, the course will not be exclusively focused on the Italian regulation: it will rather provide general legal principles applicable to various countries and systems. Reference to parallel legal developments in various jurisdictions will be made throughout the course.

Cases, articles and readings on specific issues will be assigned throughout the semester. Real contracts and corporate bylaws will be examined in class.

EMERSON, Business Law, New York, 2011 KRAAKMAN-DAVIES-HANSMANN-HERTIG-HOPT-KANDA-ROCK, The Anatomy of Corporate Law. A Comparative and Functional Approach, Oxford, 2004

Lecture slides; Text book; Multimedia materials;

Exam: Computer-based written test in class using POLITO platform;

The grades will be based on a written examination at the end of the course. The examination will be a closed book test with a duration of 60 minutes and with 10 questions (a combination of open questions and multiple choice questions) each graded from 0 to 3 points, with no point deductions in case of wrong answers. Questions are aimed at evaluating comprehension of legal concepts, acquisition of proper terminology and ability to explain/solve issues in a brief and effective way.

In addition to the message sent by the online system, students with disabilities or Specific Learning Disorders (SLD) are invited to directly inform the professor in charge of the course about the special arrangements for the exam that have been agreed with the Special Needs Unit. The professor has to be informed at least one week before the beginning of the examination session in order to provide students with the most suitable arrangements for each specific type of exam.