Project Paper

MBA 610 Final Project Part I Guidelines and Rubric
Overview
The first part of the final project for this course is the creation of a memorandum.
Legal situations arise frequently in everyday business practice, but the assessment of the key issues is not always clear. A working understanding of essential
business law concepts is critical for the successful navigation of complex and diverse business environments. Successfully addressing real-world situations will
sharpen your skills in spotting issues, identifying vulnerabilities that you may face as a member of the corporate world, and becoming more sensitive to legal
dilemmas that commonly arise in business.
For your two-part summative assessment, you will be preparing two professional business memorandums related to the application of business law in specific
hypothetical scenarios. For Final Project Part I, you will assume the role of an intern at the legal department at one of the two companies in the scenario (Greene
or Howell) and compile a 10-page memo for your supervisor, which will be used to formulate an official executive brief of the lawsuits. Your findings and critical
assessment of the cases will help shape the approach of corporate stakeholders to the legal matters raised, including each company’s response to each situation.
The project is divided into two milestones, which will be submitted at various points throughout the course to scaffold learning and ensure quality final
submissions. These milestones will be submitted in Modules Two and Five. The final submission of Final Project Part I will be submitted in Module Eight.
In this assignment, you will demonstrate your mastery of the following course outcomes:
 Assess the impact of business law on organizational decision making for informing strategic legal decisions
 Analyze pertinent facts of business client cases by effectively employing foundational law principles
 Select key legislation and legal precedents that impact client cases for informing legal decisions
 Assess the impact of public perception on companies in legal situations for informing business practices
 Assess the legal and ethical implications of United States companies doing business abroad for informing business decisions that are compliant with
applicable domestic laws
Prompt
You are an intern at the legal department at one of the companies in the following scenario (Greene or Howell) and tasked with compiling a memo for your
supervisor, which will be used to formulate an official executive brief of these lawsuits.
Scenario
Mary Jane and Allen Greene, a married couple, own a high-end costume jewelry manufacturing and distribution company called Greene’s Jewelry Wholesale,
LLC. The principal place of business for Greene’s Jewelry is in Derry, New Hampshire, where it owns a warehouse and two storefronts. Originally started in 1957,
the company expanded over five decades, and it now employs 502 individuals in a variety of departments, including sales and marketing, research and
development, human resources, and manufacturing.
The primary asset of Greene’s Jewelry is its process for creating a synthetic gold-colored material called “Ever-Gold,” which is used in Greene’s necklaces, rings,
earrings, and bracelets. Ever-Gold is impervious to scratches, discoloration, oxidization, and is marketed as “everlasting gold.” Greene’s maintains this process as
a trade secret.
Jennifer Lawson, who has been employed for three years as a junior executive secretary in the research and development department at Greene’s Jewelry, has
just learned that she is pregnant. She has earned high marks on each of her annual reviews with the company, with the exception of the fact that she routinely
shows up 15 to 30 minutes late for work. Otherwise, she is deemed to be professional, articulate, diligent, and skilled in her role with the company. When Lawson
advises the head of human resources, Lisa Peele, that she may have to take additional time off as a result of some high-risk factors that she will face during the
course of her pregnancy, she is told that her position has been eliminated. The specific words are: “Congratulations Jennifer! That is exciting news for you. We do
not need to worry about time off, though, because, regrettably, I was just going to let you know that we are downsizing and no longer have a need for any of our
junior executive secretaries.”
Jennifer is distraught, and immediately returns to her desk to clear it out as instructed. She removes all of her personal items, as well as the projects she was
working on prior to her discussion with Lisa Peele. When she returns to her home, she realizes that she has inadvertently taken a draft letter to Greene’s
intellectual property attorney, which details the secret process for creating Ever-Gold.
Although Greene’s Jewelry requires all of its executives to sign covenants not to compete and confidentiality agreements, Jennifer was only required to sign a
confidentiality agreement, by which she agreed never to disclose any information that she might acquire from Greene’s regarding the process used to create
Ever-Gold.
Panicked, and knowing that she needs a job, she calls one of Greene’s competitors, Howell Jewelry World, and advises its hiring manager that she is a former
employee of Greene’s, that she needs a job, and that she has confidential information about Ever-Gold that would help Howell compete with Greene’s. The
hiring manager at Howell, Naomi White, schedules an interview with Jennifer for the following day
At the end of the interview, Naomi makes an offer to Jennifer to begin work with Howell immediately, but she conditions the offer on Jennifer’s execution of an
employment contract. The contract contains two specific provisions that Naomi insists Jennifer read and initial, in addition to signing the contract as a whole. One
of those provisions states that Jennifer will disclose the information she has regarding the Ever-Gold process prior to commencing work with Howell. The other
provision is a covenant to not work for any competitor of Howell for two years after she leaves the employ of Howell, irrespective of the reason for leaving, and
whether she quits or is fired. Jennifer initials both of the provisions, signs the contract for employment, and gives Naomi a copy of the letter that she removed
from her desk at Greene’s.
One week after she starts working with Howell, Jennifer is fired for chronic tardiness, and she thereafter gets a job working as a sales associate with the only
other jewelry company in town, Triumph Jewels.
Meanwhile, Greene’s learns that Howell has acquired knowledge of the secret process used to create Ever-Gold, and that Howell has tweaked the process slightly
to create a product with similar characteristics and qualities to Ever-Gold. Howell, for its part, has learned that Jennifer is working for a competitor and fears that
Jennifer will disclose the process to Triumph. Finally, one of Howell’s customers had developed a disfiguring rash as a direct result of the new process Howell has
begun using in its jewelry.
Greene’s sues Jennifer for breach of the confidentiality agreement when it learns that she has given confidential information to Howell. Jennifer counter-sues
Greene’s for wrongful termination. Howell sues Jennifer for breach of the covenant not to compete, and Jennifer counter-sues for fraudulent inducement,
believing that she was tricked into signing the employment contract with Howell and that Howell was never interested in hiring her, but was interested only in
acquiring information on the process to create Ever-Gold. Howell also sues Triumph, claiming that it knew or should have known that Jennifer was subject to a
covenant not to compete, and that Triumph should therefore be bound by its provisions.
Specifically, the following critical elements must be addressed:
I. Memo Introduction: Articulate what you feel are the strengths of your company’s legal claim or defense.
II. Client’s Case
A. Facts and Laws
1. Analyze the facts related to employment discrimination or unlawful termination based on your company’s perspective.
2. Analyze the facts related to contract issues based on your company’s perspective.
3. Identify the operative employment and contract laws that apply to your company’s case.
B. Precedent
1. Select cases that support your company’s position in terms of employment discrimination or unlawful termination. Justify why they
support its case.
2. Select cases that support your company’s position in terms of contract disputes. Justify why they support its case.
C. Facts to be Determined
1. Determine any facts that will help you better analyze your company’s position. In other words, what questions do you need answered
before you can proceed?
2. Explain how the identified facts will help establish the legal rights and/or obligations of the defendant in relation to your company. In
other words, how would those facts reflect on the propriety and legality of the decisions that were made?
D. Application of the Law to the Facts: Using the precedents you have selected in case law, regulations, and substantive law, assess the strengths
and weaknesses of your company’s arguments in court. Is it probable your company will win this legal dispute?
E. Impact Assessment
1. Based on your analysis, how do you believe this situation may affect public perception of your selected company? Will the public
discourse reflect possible legal outcomes? Be sure to use specific examples.
2. Make suggestions on how to alleviate any damages to your selected company’s public perception going forward. Will action(s) related
to the other party be appropriate?
3. Recommend how the company should modify specific business practices to avoid similar situations in the future.
Milestones
Milestone One: Introduction, Facts and Laws, Precedent, and Facts to be Determined
In Module Two, you will submit your Memo Introduction, Facts and Laws, Precedent, and Facts to be Determined sections (Sections I, IIA, IIB, and IIC) of the
memorandum. In the Memo Introduction, articulate what you feel are the strengths of your company’s legal claim or defense. In the Facts and Laws section,
analyze the facts related to employment discrimination or unlawful termination based on your company’s perspective. Analyze the facts related to contract issues
based on your company’s perspective. Identify the operative employment and contract laws that apply to your company’s case. In the Precedent section, select
cases that support your company’s position in terms of employment discrimination or unlawful termination. Justify why they support its case. Select cases that
support your company’s position in terms of contract disputes. Justify why they support its case. In the Facts to be Determined section, determine any facts that
will help you better analyze your company’s position. In other words, what questions do you need answered before you can proceed? Explain how the identified
facts will help establish the legal rights and/or obligations of the defendant in relation to your company. In other words, how would those facts reflect on the
propriety and legality of the decisions that were made? This milestone should be 4–5 pages. This milestone is graded with the Final Project Part I Milestone One
Guidelines and Rubric.
Milestone Two: Application of the Law to the Facts and Impact Assessment
In Module Five, you will submit the Application of the Law to the Facts and the Impact Assessment sections (Sections IID and IIE) of the memorandum. In the
Application of the Law to the Facts section, use the precedents you have selected in case law, regulations, and substantive law, assess the strengths and
weaknesses of your company’s arguments in court. Is it probable your company will win this legal dispute? In the Impact Assessment section, based on your
analysis, how do you believe this situation may affect public perception of your selected company? Will the public discourse reflect possible legal outcomes? Be
sure to use specific examples. Make suggestions on how to alleviate any damages to your selected company’s public perception going forward. Will action(s)
related to the other party be appropriate? Recommend how the company should modify specific business practices to avoid similar situations in the future. This
milestone should be 4–5 pages. This milestone is graded with the Final Project Part I Milestone Two Guidelines and Rubric.
Final Submission: Memorandum
In Module Eight, you will submit your completed memorandum. It should be a complete, polished artifact containing all of the critical elements of the final
product. It should reflect the incorporation of feedback gained throughout the course. This submission will be graded using the Final Project Part I Rubric.
Deliverables
Milestone Deliverable Module Due Grading
One Introduction, Facts and Laws, Precedent,
and Facts to be Determined sections
Two Graded separately; Final Project Part I Milestone One
Rubric
Two Application of the Law to the Facts and
Impact Assessment sections
Five Graded separately; Final Project Part I Milestone Two
Rubric
Final Submission: Memorandum Eight Graded separately; Final Project Part I Rubric
Final Project Part I Rubric
Guidelines for Submission: Your professional business memorandum should adhere to the following formatting requirements: 10 pages (not including title and
reference pages), double-spaced, using 12-point Times New Roman font, and one-inch margins. You should use current APA style guidelines for your citations
and reference list. Generally speaking, the best memos include references to at least two cases for each point of law that is mentioned. Students also earn high
marks when they cite to cases that appear to support a different legal resolution than the one presented by the student, and then distinguishing that case from
the scenario described in this assignment. Such distinctions demonstrate exemplary understanding of the course materials.
Critical Elements Exemplary (100%) Proficient (90%) Needs Improvement (70%) Not Evident (0%) Value
Memo
Introduction
Meets “Proficient” criteria and
shows keen insight into the
strengths of legal claims or
defenses based on the facts of
business situations
Articulates the strengths of
company’s legal claim or defense
Articulates the strengths of
company’s legal claim or defense,
but with gaps in accuracy or detail
Does not articulate the strengths
of company’s legal claim or
defense
8
Facts and Laws:
Unlawful
Termination
Meets “Proficient” criteria and
demonstrates a nuanced
understanding of the relationship
between established law and facts
of legal cases
Analyzes facts related to
employment discrimination or
unlawful termination based on
company’s perspective
Analyzes facts related to
employment discrimination or
unlawful termination based on
company’s perspective, but with
gaps in accuracy or detail
Does not analyze facts related to
employment discrimination or
unlawful termination based on
company’s perspective
8
Facts and Laws:
Contract Issues
Meets “Proficient” criteria and
demonstrates a nuanced
understanding of the relationship
between established law and facts
of legal cases
Analyzes facts related to contract
issues based on company’s
perspective
Analyzes facts related to contract
issues based on company’s
perspective, but with gaps in
accuracy or detail
Does not analyze facts related to
contract issues based on
company’s perspective
8
Facts and Laws:
Laws
Meets “Proficient” criteria and
demonstrates a nuanced
understanding of how
foundational law applies to client
cases in business law
Identifies operative employment
and contract laws that apply to
company’s case
Identifies operative employment
and contract laws that apply to
company’s case, but one or more
operative laws are missing or
there are inaccuracies
Does not identify operative
employment and contract laws
that apply to company’s case
8
Precedent:
Unlawful
Termination
Meets “Proficient” criteria and
justification shows keen insight
into how precedents impact client
cases
Selects cases that support
company’s position in terms of
employment discrimination or
unlawful termination, logically
justifying selections
Selects cases that support
company’s position in terms of
employment discrimination or
unlawful termination, justifying
selections, but case(s) are
inappropriate for supporting case
or justification has gaps in logic or
detail
Does not select cases that support
company’s position in terms of
employment discrimination or
unlawful termination
8
Precedent:
Contract Disputes
Meets “Proficient” criteria and
justification shows keen insight
into how precedents impact client
cases
Selects cases that support
company’s position in terms of
contract disputes, logically
justifying selections
Selects cases that support
company’s position in terms of
contract disputes, justifying
selections, but case(s) are
inappropriate for supporting case
or justification has gaps in logic or
detail
Does not select cases that support
company’s position in terms of
contract disputes
8
Facts to be
Determined: Facts
Meets “Proficient” criteria and
demonstrates a broad
understanding of the law
principles necessary for
establishing pertinent facts of
client cases
Determines facts needed for
better analyzing company’s
position
Determines facts needed for
better analyzing company’s
position, but with gaps in logic or
detail
Does not determine facts needed
for better analyzing company’s
position
8
Facts to be
Determined:
Establish
Meets “Proficient” criteria and
demonstrates a broad
understanding of the law
principles necessary for
establishing pertinent facts of
client cases
Explains how identified facts will
help establish the legal rights
and/or obligations of defendant in
relation to company
Explains how identified facts will
help establish the legal rights
and/or obligations of defendant in
relation to company, but with gaps
in logic or detail
Does not explain how identified
facts will help establish the legal
rights and/or obligations of
defendant in relation to company
8
Application of the
Law to the Facts
Meets “Proficient” criteria and
assessment shows keen insight
into the implications of laws and
precedents for business decisions
related to legal situations
Logically assesses the strengths
and weaknesses of company’s
arguments in court based on
selected laws and precedents,
addressing likelihood of winning
legal dispute
Assesses the strengths and
weaknesses of company’s
arguments in court based on
selected laws and precedents,
addressing likelihood of winning
legal dispute, but with gaps in
logic, detail, or relevance to
selected laws or precedents
Does not assess the strengths and
weaknesses of company’s
arguments in court based on
selected laws and precedents,
addressing likelihood of winning
legal dispute
8
Impact
Assessment: Public
Perception
Meets “Proficient” criteria and
shows keen insight into the impact
of legal situations on the public
perception of companies
Logically evaluates how legal
situation may affect public
perception of company, providing
specific examples
Evaluates how legal situation may
affect public perception of
company, providing specific
examples, but has gaps in logic or
detail
Does not evaluate how legal
situation may affect public
perception of company, providing
specific examples
8
Impact
Assessment:
Damages
Meets “Proficient” criteria and
suggestions reflect a nuanced
understanding of how public
perception of legal situations
impacts company responses
Makes appropriate suggestions for
how to alleviate damages to
company’s public perception,
addressing whether actions
related to other party are
appropriate
Makes suggestions for how to
alleviate damages to company’s
public perception, addressing
whether actions related to other
party are appropriate, but not all
suggestions are appropriate or key
details are missing
Does not make suggestions for
how to alleviate damages to
company’s public perception,
addressing whether actions
related to other party are
appropriate
8
Impact
Assessment:
Business Practices
Meets “Proficient” criteria and
recommendations are especially
appropriate for business decisions
that are informed by public
perception
Makes appropriate
recommendations for how the
company should modify specific
business practices to avoid similar
situations in the future
Makes recommendations on how
the company should modify
specific business practices to avoid
similar situations in the future, but
not all recommendations are
appropriate or key details are
missing
Does not make recommendations
for how the company should
modify specific business practices
to avoid similar situations in the
future
8
Articulation of
Response
Submission is free of errors related
to citations, grammar, spelling,
syntax, and organization and is
presented in a professional and
easy-to-read format
Submission has no major errors
related to citations, grammar,
spelling, syntax, or organization
Submission has major errors
related to citations, grammar,
spelling, syntax, or organization
that negatively impact readability
and articulation of main ideas
Submission has critical errors
related to citations, grammar,
spelling, syntax, or organization
that prevent understanding of
ideas
4
Total 100%