According to the current business environment, law does not have an exact definition. However, it is a set of rules, principles, and standards that summarize the behavioral practices in business (Gibson & Fraser, 2013). Therefore, it is this legal system that helps us in defining the acceptable social behavior. Laws acts as a boundary to some activities that are not in the best interest of the members of the public. Therefore, in today’s business environment, laws and courts have several roles to play. For instance, it protects the consumers, employees, the environment, and taxation.
The role of the government in the business sector is to offer protection to the consumers especially from illegal business practices through enforcement of rules and regulations to be followed when practicing business. Similarly, the government must be responsible for offering protection to the workers employed in various businesses by ensuring that they are safe in their working environment and free from discrimination. The business environment must be protected to ensure that the area of operation is safe and is not harmful to the environment. The major form of government revenue is taxation. Therefore, without taxation, there will be a budget deficit for basic things like schools and security.
While comparing and contrasting the federal courts against my state court (California), I found that the system of the federal court is more formal than the state court structures. For instance, there is no conversation at the time when the judge is on the bench. That is people in the courtrooms are required to exercise a lot of professionalism. Unlike in California, it is informal because one may see many attorneys talk while court is in session. Federal crimes are always heard in federal courts. Additionally, as federal courts handle cases that involve federal laws, the state courts in California are handling the case that involves state laws, local municipal, and county codes.
The federal case is investigated by the federal agencies such as FBI, and ATF and the cases are being prosecuted by the federal prosecutors. On the other hand, the state cases are investigated by county agencies such as the department of local police, and local sheriff units. Both assistant district attorneys and city prosecutors are the people to prosecute cases in state courts. The federal courts exercise a sentencing formula guideline when imposing sentences on the convicted criminals. However, the California state courts do not have a sentence guideline structure to follow when imposing sentence.
Judicial review
The power of the court in declaring that the actions of other branches of the government are against the constitution, thus not enforceable is the judicial review (Smith, 2015). For instance, if the Congress passes a law to ban the publication of some political issues, the court may have the power to rule against this law because it violates the first Amendment, and therefore, it is unconstitutional. According to this concept, the state courts also have the authority to strike down their laws based on the state or federal constitution.
How laws and regulations affect my industry
Regulatory laws influence the operation of my business in specific situations. However, most business laws are regulatory in some ways. Many legislation categories apply specifically to my industry than others. They include the environmental laws that have been set by the federal government and state governments. Another regulation that influences my job is labor laws because they pertain directly to how the company that I work for is treating the employees. This law regulates the minimum wage, wage garnishment, and rules that protect the workers. Since the state laws provide insurance benefits programs to the employees, I enjoy full job security.
According to the reporting laws, businesses have to report their finances to their respective investors and the government. Consequently, this law sets some standards of incorporating industries to meet the reporting requirements for the purpose of transparency. Therefore, it prevent fraudulent activities and misconduct in the company. However, these laws were affected by the Sarbanes-Oxley Act.
The major forms of the alternative dispute resolution are mediation, arbitration, negotiation (Luten, 2008). Arbitration is the resolution of disputes non-judicial third parties. That is it seeks the assistance of a neutral third party (Luten, 2008). After listening to all parties, the arbitrator is required to pronounce his or her decision. However, since the rule of evidence is not applicable to arbitration, it is still informal as compared to a full-blown trial. Concerning mediation, there will be a mediator who will help both parties to reach an agreement. However, a mediator is not allowed to force both parties to come to an agreement and should not determine the outcome of the dispute. In negotiation, all parties will negotiate to achieve a compromise. However, it is always overlooked since it does not need a negotiator. The ADR is different from the court system because they are usually informal and consumes less time than a court trial. However, ADR can provide more opportunity to people while determining when and how their disputes will be resolved.
References
Gibson, A., & Fraser, D. (2013). Business Law 2014. Pearson Higher Education AU.
Luten, S. (2008). California Civil Litigation (5th ed.). California: Cengage Learning.
Smith, T. (2015). Judicial Review in an Objective Legal System. Cambridge University Press.
