The Role and Function of Law in Society and Business (Coursework Sample)

The Roles and Functions of Law in Society and Business
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Introduction
The legal philosopher William Douglas equates proper laws to common sense edicts. In other words, law enforces common sense and establishes order in human relations. This relationship exists in business, society, and public-private interactions. Laws represent a set of codified ethics, rules, customs and usages as well as rules that delineate the spheres of human conduct. The enforcement of legislation is by the threat of punishment in the case of violations (Vago, 2015). Laws guide every aspect of organized behavior and are most evident in commercial, personal, and public order sectors.
The classifications of law provide a hint as to their roles and functions (Vago, 2015). Criminal laws enforce the prosecution of crime; civil laws delineate the circumstances through which private parties may litigate against each other. Public laws determine the interaction between government and the citizenry while private laws dictate the terms of private citizen engagement with others. Substantive laws provide the framework through which social rights/duties may be enjoyed, and procedural law determines the steps the government is to follow in its enforcement against of breaches in substantive law.
Law and Business
Law serves important roles and functions in society. Firstly, the law acts to establish rules against anti-trust practices and other anti-competitive trade practices. Laws including the Clayton Act and the Sherman Act delineate the limits of business conduct and serves to punish anti-trust behavior among businesses (Vago, 2015). Through curtailing such acts as the monopolization of business, unfair pricing, collusive tendering and bidding, et al., the law creates a competitive climate for enterprises in a free-trade environment (Vago, 2015). Secondly, the law protects the intellectual property of companies and innovators. Copyrights, trademarks, patents and geographical indications are some of the rights in property that are regulated by laws. The intellectual property in particular interests can fetch billions of dollars in revenues, and it is the function of the law to determine their regulation.
One of the purposes of a business is to create employment. The employer-employee relationship is one that is regulated by the law. Legal instruments such as the Equal Opportunities Act, the Anti-Age Discrimination Act, collective bargaining agreements and even the Occupational Safety and Health Act, which protects the employers and employees from work-related injuries and provides mechanisms for redress, determine the rights and obligations of each party. Employment laws also determine the minimum wage caps on tasks and minimum wage standards are enforced by the law to prevent exploitation of employees.
Also, laws function to protect consumers from exploitation by businesses. This consumer protection laws include cheating on weights and measures, mislabeling of goods and services, and the sale of dangerous products to the public. In the case of Cipollone vs. Liggett Group, Inc., et al., 505 U.S. 504 (1992), the United States Court rejected an application by a consumer against the Liggett Group, cigarette manufacturers, which application sought to compel the company to pay the plaintiff damages for the death of his mother. The plaintiff’s mother was a cigarette smoker and on her death, the plaintiff alleged that the cigarette company was liable because it misled consumers into smoking by promoting it is healthy. The Supreme Court, in its ratio, reasoned that the suit was pre-empted by federal law that conclusively dealt with cigarette advertising, thus supplanting the force of state law on the same.
In my past and present interaction with business and industry, the law has and continues to serve other important roles and functions. For instance, laws prescribe the interaction between business undertakings and the environment. Laws exist that punish certain activities such as industrial pollution, misuse or misapplication of natural capital, and prevent the release of certain industrial substances to the atmosphere. The Clean Water Act is an example of legal regulations that specify how people and business interact with water bodies. Laws also apply to business taxation (Lauterpacht, 2011). Businesses, just like natural persons, enjoy rights and owe obligations to the state. The law determines the amount of tax payable by each enterprise.
Law and Society
The roles and functions of law in society are as diverse as the Acts of Congress that have been enacted over the country’s legal existence. The most significant are as follows:
* Promoting human rights and checking the exercise of power by governments.
* Facilitating physical (infrastructural) and economic planning for present and future dates.
* Environmental protection.
* The maintenance of law and order (peacekeeping).
* Achieving social justice.
Various statutes and regulations help achieve these objectives (Hayek, 2012). Constitutional law provides the only appropriate framework through which laws can be...