LL.M. Business Law in Practice
Business Law in Practice is a two-credit, simulation-based course designed for LL.M. students seeking practical exposure to U.S. business law and in-house legal work. Students act as in-house counsel for a fictional Minnesota-based company, Groovia, Inc., which works in food and beverage manufacturing.
Through structured weekly case files, students confront common in-house legal problems, including:
- Contract formation and commercial negotiations
- Endorsements and advertising compliance
- UCC performance disputes and supplier allocation
- Employment-at-will and early litigation posture
- Intellectual property ownership
- Local permits, signage, and sound regulations
- Responding to competitor demand letters
- Defamation and qualified privilege in employer communications
- Integrated risk management in a board-level capstone simulation
The course emphasizes how business law actually works and the work that business lawyers actually do: identifying legally relevant facts, researching unfamiliar areas of law efficiently, translating doctrine into clear advice for non-lawyers, drafting concise and usable documents, and making reasoned recommendations under time and business constraints.
The course does not attempt to provide doctrinal coverage equivalent to a traditional survey. Instead, it focuses on applied problem-solving, professional judgment, and business-facing communication.