"Because of the foundation that Business Planning and the Transactional Negotiation Team provided, I was able to integrate into the firm’s corporate group very quickly, and am now getting to do things that I never thought that I would do as a starting attorney."
- Jacob Reichman '19, Kirkland & Ellis
Business Planning: Financing the Start-Up Business and Venture Capital Financing is the capstone course developed through the Business Law Practicum. It allows students to understand the lawyer’s role in business transactions by taking an entrepreneurial “client” from entity formation through a series of simulated transactions, including a joint venture, founder stock issuance and first round venture capital financing. This format introduces students to the legal, ethical and business issues that confront the transactional lawyer in representing an early stage growth company.
The book by the same name provides students with a detailed view into the substantive law governing various areas relevant to representing new businesses. The book also exposes students to sample agreements, charter language and other practical resources designed to ensure students receive hands-on training and develop fundamental transactional lawyering skills.
Business Planning is designed to be taught by an experienced transactional lawyer who can lead the students to an understanding of the multiple areas of law faced by the transactional practitioner and accompanying skills. Each semester, Loyola offers multiple sections of Business Planning to accommodate student schedules and demand. The Director for the Transactional Lawyering Institute teaches one section of the course each semester and experienced practitioners teach the other sections as Adjunct Professors.
The Transactional Negotiation Team gives students the opportunity to analyze and develop a strategy to address a complex business deal, then compete with each other in a negotiation tournament where they receive mentoring and feedback from practicing transactional lawyers. The negotiation tournament lasts for the duration of the semester and gives students ample opportunity to develop a personal approach to their negotiations, refine their style and strategy and learn about the substantive terms of the transaction at hand. Similar to moot court programs, students benefit from “stand up” opportunities to practice deal negotiation in a live setting.
Exploring the Role of In-House Counsel places students in the shoes of a General Counsel. In this course, students learn how to analyze and respond to a broad range of matters impacting public and private companies from the perspective of in-house counsel. The class focuses on practical simulations based on, or largely derived from, actual legal matters that today's corporate legal departments are currently experiencing. In addition to simulation exercises, supplemental readings, sample documents, case studies and class discussions expose students to the range of issues and challenges faced by in-house lawyers. This innovative course is divided into several "modules" with each module led by attorney instructors who have considerable in-house experience as General Counsel or senior in-house counsel.
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Loyola's Business Law Curriculum
Loyola Law offers a comprehensive business law curriculum that provides students with the substantive foundation critical to becoming a successful attorney. The curriculum is taught by scholars and practitioners who prepare students for work in a range of disciplines, including corporate, finance, litigation, entrepreneurship and real estate.
Business Associations, Mergers & Acquisitions, and Securities Regulation provide students with both theoretical understandings and concrete foundations in the formation, operation, financing and governance of businesses. Specialized courses provide students with opportunities to explore topics such as venture capital, digital media and the law, blockchain technology, business strategy, artificial intelligence and more. Several courses (described above) are designed specifically to create experiential learning opportunities for students, with opportunities to step into the shoes of general counsel and to negotiate a complex transaction in front of practitioners.