Legal Issues

There will be two other essays written by the class. The first will deal with the “due process” aspects of the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments. The second essay concerns the development of “privacy rights” which were not specifically stated in the US Constitution. Each of these will be turned in on assigned dates during the term and will be the topic of roundtable discussions. They should use all APA 6th or 7th items, be at least 6 pages of content (does not include cover page, abstract, references in the page count , but must be included), and must include specific information related to the issue(s) discussed, 3 – 5 legal cases with bearing upon issues at hand, some historical development and current acts, and the resultant actions or activities related to the healthcare profession. The desired outcome is for students to form a deeper understanding of why and how these issues have impacted healthcare historically and have shaped its current practice. Each of these will be turned in on assigned dates during the term and will be the topic of roundtable forum discussions. Additionally, they must be uploaded in a video format for everyone in the class to view and comment on the provided forum. In order to meet the discussion requirement, each student discussion must be a minimum of 200 words (about 14 to 15 lines Times/New Roman) at 12 point font size and may not include phrases such as “I thought that they did a good job”, or “it was nice”. Rather students must view the presentation and make comment on specific talking points in order to qualify for credit. Do not comment on your own work! Turn It In All papers must be submitted using the Turn It In portal provided in the Moodle shell for the class. No papers will be accepted in any other form. All papers must contain no more than 23% non-original content. Any papers which contain more than 23% non-original content will be severely penalized and all papers which has more than 30% will not be accepted. Do not submit papers that you do not write yourself. Do not submit papers which do not follow APA 6th or 7th and do not submit papers through any form other than Turn It In provided for this class. Those that do not follow these guidelines will not be accepted. All papers must be submitted on time in the correct form and format.

Scenario: A customer walks into a dressmaker’s shop to buy a wedding dress. The customer greets the store owner courteously, and the customer politely states her business. The white store owner politely but firmly informs the customer that they cannot sell the customer a dress because the customer is an African American and is left-handed, and the store owner promptly asks the customer to leave and not come back. According to the store owner, who (unbeknownst to the customer before entering) is an evangelical Christian, the book of Genesis mandates that whites not sell goods to African Americans or to left-handed people, as this is “detestable.” The customer sues, claiming that the store’s policy is discriminatory and violates both the federal Civil Rights Act of 1964 and a state law that forbids using religious beliefs as a reason for private businesses to refuse service. The store owner claims that, under the Free Exercise Clause of the Constitution, the owner has the right to refuse service on religious grounds and that the Civil Rights Act and the state law violate the owner’s right to free exercise. Questions: If you were a judge, how would you decide this case? Use Masterpiece Cakeshop v Colorado Civil rights commission as only source. Stance: Although the reasoning behind the store owners refusal of service is socially unacceptable (in my own terms), the US constitution holds higher precedent over state law.

Assume the post you are responding to was the legal advice given to Liz and Jules and they have come to you seeking a second opinion. Do you agree or disagree with the legal advice they were given? Why or why not? Provide one more additional business form would you advise Liz and Jules to consider and why? Your post/replies can only be based on the textbook, lectures and slides and other responses. Internet resources and other resources outside the course material are prohibited, as is collaboration. The posts/replies must be original work. Do not quote or cut and paste from any source, including the textbook. Show your own understanding. Post: As counsel for both Liz and Jules, my recommendation would be to either form a Limited Liability Partnership or a Limited Partnership. Based on the information given to me by Liz regarding Jules’ mismanagement of her previous clients’ finances, I had suggested that a limited partnership might be an option. With this business form, either Liz or Jules could be the general or limited partner. The general partner would assume full responsibility for the management of the firm and its debts. The limited partner would be able to contribute funds and would own an interest in the firm, but is not involved in any managerial responsibilities and is only liable for their personal investment. With that being said, it was worth mentioning that a limited partner can give up limited liability and take part in the firm’s management. I had made this an option with Liz in mind as the limited partner and Jules as the general partner. I know Liz was concerned and thought it would be a good idea to suggest she’d be only liable for her initial investment, in case any further mismanagement from Jules were to occur. The benefit of discarding the limited partner title was also a good idea in case Jules had proved that her previous mismanagement was a one-time incident. After consulting with my clients regarding the first option, I presented my ideal option in regards to their predicament. A limited liability partnership seems like the best method because it helps partners avoid personal liability for the malpractice of other partners. Partners are still, of course, liable for their own wrongful acts and a partner would still be liable if they supervise the party that commits a wrongful act. One of the many benefits of this business formation is the ability to continue as a pass-through entity. This would mean that Liz and Jules would avoid income tax at the corporate level, avoid double taxation, corporate income is allocated among the owners, and income taxes are only levied at the individual owner’s level. The formation of an LLP is rather simple. Because the firm’s basic structure remains the same, converting from a traditional partnership into an LLP is relatively easy. Additionally, all laws and statutes governing partnerships remain the same.