business law

Trade Regulation: an overview

The terms commerce and trade are often used interchangeably, with commerce referring to large-scale business activity and trade describing commercial traffic within a state or a community.  The U.S. Constitution, through the Commerce Clause, gives Congress exclusive power over trade activities between the states and with foreign countries.  Trade within a state is regulated exclusively by the states themselves.  As with any commercial activity, intrastate and interstate trade is often times indistinguishable.

International trade law: an overview

International trade is “the exchange of goods [or] services” “between nations.” Black’s Law Dictionary 285, 1529 (8th ed. 2004).

Definition

Any method of resolving disputes other than by litigation.  Abbreviated as ADR.  Public courts may be asked to review the validity of ADR methods, but they will rarely overturn ADR decisions and awards if the disputing parties formed a valid contract to abide by them.  Arbitration and mediation are the two major forms of ADR.

Overview

Alternative Dispute Resolution ("ADR") refers to any means of settling disputes outside of the courtroom. ADR typically includes early neutral evaluation, negotiation, conciliation, mediation, and arbitration. As burgeoning court queues, rising costs of litigation, and time delays continue to plague litigants, more states have begun experimenting with ADR programs. Some of these programs are voluntary; others are mandatory.

bankruptcy: an overview

Bankruptcy law provides for the development of a plan that allows a debtor, who is unable to pay his creditors, to resolve his debts through the division of his assets among his creditors. This supervised division also allows the interests of all creditors to be treated with some measure of equality. Certain bankruptcy proceedings allow a debtor to stay in business and use revenue generated to resolve his or her debts. An additional purpose of bankruptcy law is to allow certain debtors to free themselves (to be discharged) of the financial obligations they have accumulated, after their assets are distributed, even if their debts have not been paid in full.