International Business Transactions

3 units

Cross-border business transactions are the mainstay of the modern global economy, and very few transactions can be negotiated or completed without considering potential international implications. This course is designed to give you a broad overview of the law governing international business transactions, including federal and state, foreign, and international laws. We explore these legal regimes through the lens of seven distinct kinds of international business transaction. The course begins with cross-border commercial transactions (sales, agents, distributors, and licensing), and then turns to transactions that involve foreign investment (foreign direct investment, mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, and concession agreements). We address these transactions in a problem-based format, reviewing and assessing the formative contracts for each kind of business transaction. We investigate some of the principal kinds of regulation that apply to each, such as antitrust law, securities law, intellectual property law, the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, and others. Along the way, we consider issues that cut across many types of international transactions: international dispute resolution, the place of international law in the U.S. legal system, the extraterritorial application of domestic law, corporate social responsibility, and transnational lawyering. The course grade will be based primarily on an exam made up of a mix of objective and essay questions. It may also take into account class participation and engagement with a negotiation and drafting exercise. There are no prerequisites. [BCCCR Requirement: this course contains 3 hours of BCCCR instruction.]