Week 2 Case Description and Analysis

Week 2 Case Description and Analysis

The first subject for review will be common law and contracts. Using the library or the Internet [i.e. Casetext.com], find and select a current or past court case that is related to the use of contracts within the hospitality industry.  Once a case is selected, provide description, explanation, evaluation, and critique of the legal issues represented, the arguments presented, and the court decision made. If the case is unfinished, provide a prediction of what the decision may be and explain why.  Finally, provide an assessment of how the legal question or court decision may be representative of the current state of the industry and societal values/norms. 

Any case used for this assignment should be related to contracts between businesses or between a business and a client or customer. Consider cases related to reservations, catering and service, event or travel planning, management agreements, or employment contracts as possibilities. Research current articles using the library or use other Internet or databases to choose a specific case for analysis.  

If you select a case that was dismissed on a technicality or procedural question, you can mention, but you still need to assess the validity of the question and what may have been decided.

Objectives

• Describe the development of rules regarding the rights and liabilities of the innkeeper
• Analyze the legal implications of management decisions within hospitality operations.

Case Analysis Details

The first assignment and the next couple of assignments will be a case description and analysis.  The expectation is that you identify the primary elements of the case [facts, allegations, arguments, decisions, etc.], describe the outcome following the case or a forecasted outcome of a current case, and evaluate and critique the arguments, decisions, and outcomes. 

• Identify facts, allegations, arguments, court decision
• Describe the relevance or significance of decisions based on actual or possible outcomes in relation to the hospitality industry
• Evaluate and critique arguments, decisions, and outcomes

You are being tasked with providing evaluation, analysis, or critique. This task may be different than how you may have experienced case analyses before.  The assignments in this class are not only providing an outline, timeline, or case brief. When they are relevant to the arguments or outcome, motions and proceedings can be identified, but the focus is on identifying the legal issue presented (which is not a procedural question) and discussing the arguments and decisions made in relation to that issue. The writing does not need to convey agreement with any decision and should be an objective, unbiased assessment of the legal issue, relevant law or precedent, and the outcome. The aim is to demonstrate your understanding of the law, how it is interpreted/implemented, and how it affects the hospitality industry. 

Also, remember that the focus is on the law in the United States. You can compare and contrast with the law and court cases of other countries, but there has to be a foundation of American law in the writing. 

Standards

The analysis will be presented in essay form using APA writing standards. The following segments can be used to organize your writing; introduction to the case, the issue, the facts, the court’s decision and the reasoning for the decision (1 section), your analysis, and conclusion.

• Written communication: Written communication is free of errors that detract from the overall message.
• APA formatting: Resources and citations are formatted according to APA style and formatting.