Sales and Marketing Law

Curriculum Guideline

Effective Date:
Course
Discontinued
No
Course Code
BLAW 3710
Descriptive
Sales and Marketing Law
Department
Business Law
Faculty
Commerce & Business Administration
Credits
3.00
Start Date
End Term
Not Specified
PLAR
No
Semester Length
15 weeks
Max Class Size
35
Contact Hours

Weekly Distribution:

  • Lecture: 3 Hours
  • Seminar: 1 Hour
  • Total: 4 Hours
Method(s) Of Instruction
Lecture
Seminar
Learning Activities

Lectures, videos, analysis of legal issues, discussion of legal cases, case assignments, and/or group activities.

Course Description
This course will provide students with a strong grounding in several areas of law that commonly arise in the context of sales and marketing activities. The course will introduce students to the general framework of the Canadian legal system, including the constitutional protection provided for advertising as a form of speech. The course will also provide a thorough analysis of the common law and legislation concerning trade-marks and copyrights, as well as relevant provisions under federal and provincial consumer protection and competition legislation, including the provisions of the Competition Act and the Criminal Code applicable to activities such as promotional contests and pyramid schemes. The course will also include a review of privacy law as it applies to sales and marketing activities. Students who have already received credit for BUSN 3710 will not get further credit for this course.
Course Content

1. Introduction to the field of law and the administration of justice
2. Sources of Canadian and British Columbia law
          a. distinction between private and public law
          b. Acts of the Canadian Parliament and the provincial legislatures (emphasis on British Columbia)
          c. Canadian Constitution and the Charter of Rights and Freedoms
          d. subordinate legislation including by-laws and government regulations
          e. the court process, case law, and judicial precedent
 3. Intellectual Property
          a. trade-marks law
                       i. passing off
                       ii. registration of trade-marks
                       iii. infringement
                       iv. depreciation of goodwill
                       v. expunging marks from trade-marks registry
                       vi. domain name issues
                       vii. distinguishing guise
          b. copyright
                       i. creation of copyright protection
                       ii. moral rights
                       iii. infringement and exceptions, including fair dealing
          c. patents, trade secrets and confidential information
          d. licensing of intellectual property rights
4. Labeling and packaging
          a. label disclosure requirements, including marking of imported goods and general requirements under the Consumer
          Packaging and Labeling Act
          b. bilingualism requirements pursuant to Charter of French Language
5. Tort Law Applicable to Sales and Marketing
          a. injurious falsehood
          b. defamation
          c. deceit
          d. conspiracy
          e. interference with contractual relations
          f. misappropriation of personality
          g. negligence (particularly regarding product liability)
6. Competition Act
          a. agreements to restrict competition
          b. multi-level marketing (ie pyramid schemes)
          c. bait and switch selling
          d. refusal to deal
          e. price maintenance
          f. tied selling
          g. abuse of dominant position
          h. misleading advertising (including comparative advertising)
7. Promotional Contests
          a. requirements for skill-testing questions
          b. prohibitions against purchase requirements    
8. Privacy
          a. rules governing the collection, use and disclosure of personal information
          b. requirements to obtain consent
          c. exemptions to requirements under the federal and provincial privacy regimes
          d. telemarketing issues, including Unsolicited Telecommunications Rules and ‘do not call’ lists
          e. anti-spam legislation
9. Consumer Protection
          a. key provisions of the British Columbia Sale of Goods Act
                       i. contracts of sale of goods
                       ii. risk and passing of property
                       iii. the implied conditions and warranties of the consumer protection provisions
                       iv. special remedies under the Sale of Goods Act
          b. relevant provisions under the British Columbia Business Practices and Consumer Protection Act

Learning Outcomes

The successful student will be able to:

  • describe the structure of the Canadian legal system;
  • recognize the main aspects of the Canadian judicial system including the sources of law, the levels and roles of courts in the judicial system, and the basic elements of the court process;
  • describe the scope of the protection for freedom of expression under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms as that right applies to marketing activities;
  • summarize the different interests and legal mechanisms relating to trade-marks and copyright law, including licensing of such intellectual property rights;
  • identify common law torts particularly relevant to sales and marketing contexts, including injurious falsehood, defamation, deceit, conspiracy, interference with contractual relations, misappropriation of personality, and negligence (particularly regarding product liability).
  • demonstrate a strong understanding of relevant criminal and reviewable matters under the Competition Act, including price discrimination, multi-level marketing, bait and switch selling, and abuse of dominant position;
  • summarize the laws applicable to promotional contests;
  • identify the basic pertinent features of the law of privacy, including exemptions available under the applicable legislative schemes;
  • recount the key elements of sale of goods legislation, including passing of property and consumer protection;
  • summarize the material aspects of the B.C. Business Practices and Consumer Protection Act; and
  • apply the legal principles that are contained in this course to real world situations and cases.
Means of Assessment
Term Examinations (2) 35-45%*    
Term paper 15-25%
CLass participation and/or assignments and/or quizzes       0-10%
Final Examination 25-35%
  100%

*No one examination may be worth more than 40%

Students may conduct research as part of their coursework in this class. Instructors for the course are responsible for ensuring that student research projects comply with College policies on ethical conduct for research involving humans, which can require obtaining Informed Consent from participants and getting the approval of the Douglas College Research Ethics Board prior to conducting the research.

Textbook Materials

Pritchard, Brenda and S. Vogt, Advertising and Marketing Law in Canada. Latest edition, (Markham: LexisNexis Canada), or

Other textbook(s) as approved by the Business Law Department, and

Additional cases and/or readings as per the Instructor's discretion. 

Prerequisites

BLAW 1320 or an approved substitute or currently enrolled in one of the following:
PDD Marketing;
PDD Sales;
PDD Hospitality Management;
PDD Hospitality Marketing;
PBD Hospitality Services Management; or
PDD Business Law.

Equivalencies
Which Prerequisite

Nil