This course focuses on the complex interactions between legal, social, and business forces. Multi-national corporations influence governments; the environment is exploited and protected; people emigrate and demand more of their employers; governments try to balance business revenue and social justice. Can we say that a law ''caused'' an effect in society, or a business event ''caused'' a new law to be made? Does an effect sometimes become a cause in its own right, reinforcing an original effect? Sometimes the unintended effects of a business, legal, or social development are more important than the intended effects. We'll discuss topics including the development of the modern banking system, very large companies, how businesses relate to each other and society, how government seeks to protect people from business practices, and issues of environmental protection, free use of information (or not), and globalization.
