Certificate in Business and Commercial Law

This course is designed for professionals with no prior legal background but who are required to make organizational decisions involving legal matters. It will provide participants with the fundamental principles of commercial law, including commercial contracts and negotiation, sale of goods, intellectual property rights and employee relations. Participants will gain an in-depth understanding of both international and GCC commercial law and have the opportunity to learn and analyze key issues which they are likely to encounter within their organization.

Course Methodology
In this interactive training course participants will frequently work in pairs as well as in larger groups to complete exercises as well as regional and international case studies.

Course Objectives
By the end of the course, participants will be able to:
● Apply legal rules and principles to specific commercial situations through consideration of relevant case law
● Draft and negotiate commercial contracts complying with commercial and legal requirements
● Increase profitability within their organization by selecting appropriate methods of distribution of goods
● Recognize and analyze how intellectual property rights affect their organization
● Evaluate and modify organizational employment practices complying with labor law requirements

Target Audience
This course is suitable for those with little or no formal training in commercial law yet would be required to understand the fundamentals of commercial law as it may directly impact their work. It will particularly benefit directors and executives who have direct responsibility for legal decisions within the organization. In-house council new to the region, and those working within a legal department, will also find this course highly beneficial.

Target Competencies
● Drafting Contracts
● Contract Negotiation
● Understanding Commercial Terms
● Understanding Employment Law
● Implementing Organizational Employment Practices
● Understanding Intellectual Property

Course Outline
● Commercial Law overview
● Terminology used in commercial law
● Types of contracts
● Legal considerations
● Commercial contracts
● Common law
● Civil law
● The legal formalities in contract creation
● Commercial contract interpretation issues
● Remedies for breach of contract
● Drafting contracts
● Drafting commercial contracts in English
● Negotiating commercial contracts
● Boilerplate clauses: The important but forgotten clauses
● Amendment
● Arbitration
● Force majeure
● Notices
● Set off
● Sale of Goods
● Supply of goods
● Distributorship
● Agency
● Franchise
● Choosing the right business vehicle for a commercial entity ● When to use mergers
● Joint ventures: A strategic option for business
● Procurement activities
● Legal risk
● Commercial risk
● Managing risk
● Prevention is better than cure: Effective risk management
● Intellectual property rights management
● Applying copyright
● Applying trademarks
● Industrial property
● Other legal considerations in the GCC
● Employment issues in the GCC
● GCC labor law
● Recruitment and termination
● Employment contracts
● Commercial real estate in the GCC