This document contains an introduction and overview of several areas of law relevant to business including: - Chapter 1 introduces concepts of law, classifications of laws, and sources of law. It also discusses out-of-court dispute resolution methods. - Chapter 2 covers concepts of legal personality including the beginning and termination of legal personality for both individuals and organizations. - Chapter 3 introduces the law of contracts, including formation of contracts, capacity, consent, object and form of contracts, and performance and remedies for non-performance. - Subsequent chapters discuss the laws of agency, sales, commercial law, labor law, and other areas relevant for understanding the legal environment of business.

1. INTRODUCTION
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION TO LAW AND THE LEGAL ENVIRONMENT OF BUSINESS
1.1. Meaning of Law and Schools of Jurisprudential Thought……………………………….…3
1.2. The Features of Law …………………………………………………………………………5
1.3. Law as Distinguished from Other Social Norms…………………………………………….7
1.4. Functions of Law………………………………………………………………..……………8
1.5. Classifications of Laws and Nature of Business Law…………………………….….…….10
1.6. Sources of law………………………………………………………………………….……13
1.7. Out-of-Court Settlement and its Virtues in Business………………………………….…… 14
1.7.1. Negotiation, Conciliation and Mediation…………………………………………….….. 15
1.7.2. Arbitration………………………………………………………………………………... 16
CHAPTER TWO
LAW OF PRESONALITY
2.1. The Concept of Personality and its Effect…………………………………………………21
2.2. Beginning and Termination of Artificial Personality………………………………………22
2.3. Attributes of Legal Personality……………………………………………………………..23
2.4. Commencement of Physical Personality……………………………………………………24
2.4.1. The Rule………………………………………………………………………….……..…25
2.4.2. The Exception…………………………………………………………………………..…26
2.5. Capacity and Incapacity of Physical Persons………………………………………………..28
2.6. Termination of Physical Personality…………………………………………….…………31
CHAPTER THREE
THE LAW OF CONTRACTS
3.1. The concept of Obligation…………………………………………………………………..36
3.2. Essential Notions of Contracts………………………………………………………………37
3.3. Formation of a Contract……………………………………………………………….……41
3.3.1. Capacity………………………………………………………………………………….42
3.3.2. Consent………………………………………………………………………………..…43
3.3.2.1. Offer and Acceptance………………………………………………………………..….44
3.3.2.2. Vices of Consent………………………………………………………………….….…54
3.3.3. Object of Contracts………………………………………………………………….….…62
3.3.4. Form of Contracts…………………………………………………………………………64
3.4. Effect of Contracts…………………………………………………………………….….…67
3.4.1. Performance of Contractual Obligations…………………………………………………68
3.4.2. Non-performance of Contracts……………………………………………………………73
3.4.2.1. Specific (Forced) Performance………………………………………………………….75
3.4.2.2. Cancellation………………………………………………………………………..……76
3.4.2.3. Damages…………………………………………………………………………………79

2. CHAPTER FOUR
LAW OF AGENCY
4.1. General…………………………………………………………………………………… 88
4.2. Sources of Agency…………………………………………………………………………89
4.2.1. Agency by Operation of the Law…………………………………………………….…89
4.2.2. Contracts…………………………………………………………………………………91
4.3. Contractual Agency in Ethiopian Law…………………………………………………….91
3.1. Definition and Formation……………………………………………………………….…91
4.3.2. Scope and Types of Authority…………………………………………………….……92
4.4. Effects of Agency…………………………………………………………………….……96
4.4.1. Liability Relationships…………………………………………………………………..96
4.2.2. Duties of the Parties to the contract of Agency…………………………………………99
4.5. Special Agency Relationships……………………………………………………………103
4.5.1. Commission Agency………………………………………………………………..….103
4.5.2. Unauthorized Agency …………………………………………………………………105
4.6. Termination of Agency Relationship……………………………………………………106
4.6.1. Termination by Law………………………………………………………………..…106
4.6.2. Termination by the Parties……………………………………………………………106
CHAPTER FIVE
LAW OF SALES
5.1. Introduction to Sales Contract and Its Formation…………………………………..…113
5.1.1. Meaning and Essential Elements ………………………………….……………….…114
5.1.2. Formation of a Sale Contract…………………………………………………………..117
5.2. Performance and Obligations of Parties to Sale Contract ………………………………118
5.2.1. Obligations of the Seller……………………………………………………………..…119
5.2.2. Obligations of the Buyer…………………………………………………………….…124
5.2.3. Common Obligations of the Parties……………………………………………………125
5.3. Non-performance of a Sale Contract…………………………………………………….128
5.3.1. Forced Performance………………………………………………………………….…128
5.3.2. Cancellation………………………………………………………………………….…128
5.3.3. Damages as a Remedy for Non-performance……………………………………….…133
5.4. Some Issues About International Sale Transactions ………………………………….. 135
CHAPTER SIX
INTRODUCTION TO COMMERCIAL LAW
6.1. Law of Traders and Business Organizations …………………………………………...147
6.1.1. Traders ………………………………………………………………………………….147
6.1.2. Law of Business Organizations …………………………………………………………149
6.2. Law of Insurance ………………………………………………………………………….153
6.2.1. General ……………………………………………………………………………….…153
6.2.2. Insurable Interest …………………………………………………………………….…155
6.2.3. Insurance Policy and Rights and Duties of Parties ………………………………..….155
6.3. Some Remarks about Law of Negotiable Instruments…………………………..…….. 158

3. CHAPTER SEVEN
INTRODUCTION TO LABOR LAW
7.1. Definition…………………………………………………………………………………168
7.2. Formation……………………………………………………………….…………………169
7.3. Suspension…………………………………………………………………………………171
7.4. Termination………………………………………………………………………..………171
7.5. Effects of Lawful Termination……………………………………..……………………..172
7.5.1. Certificate of Service…………………………………………………………….………172
7.5.2 Payment instead of unutilized annual leave……………………………………………..173
7.5.3 Severance payment……………………………………………………………………….173
7.5.4 Compensation……………………………………………………………………………173
7.5.5 Period of limitation……………………………………………………………………...174
7.6. Unlawful termination and its effects……………………………………………..………174
7.7. Special categories of employees………………………………………………………….175
7.7.1. Probationary employees……………………………………….……………………….175
7.7.2. Apprentice…………………………………………………….………………….……..175
7.7.3 Young employees………………………………………………………………………. 176
7.7.4. Female employees………………………………………………………………………177
7.7.5. Employees with disability………………………………………………………………178
7.7.6. Non Ethiopian employees………………………………………………………………178
7.8. Legally stipulated minimum working conditions…………………………………………179
7.8.1. Minimum Wage………………………………………………………………………….179
7.8.2. Employment security……………………………………………………………………179
7.8.3. Normal Working hours…………………………………………………………..……..180
7.8.4. Safe and Healthy working conditions…………………………………………….……181