The Acme Fireworks Company

To ensure that they participate in activities for which they have a license and that their business transactions are legal, business organizations are required by law to adhere to a number of laws and rules. Legal business entities' business dealings are either governed by common law or the Uniform Commercial Code. Contractual exchanges involving the sale of tangible goods are governed by the uniform commercial code, which is in effect in all fifty states. According to this code, parties may agree to modify a prior contract without providing further consideration. Contractual agreements including employment, services, real estate, intangible assets, and insurance are governed by common law (Hulbert, Gilmore & Carson, 2015). It does not allow for the modification of the initial offer. It terms any adjustment to the original offer as a rejection. This paper undertakes to explain various states of contracts signed by Acme Fireworks Company. The paper will determine whether these contracts are regulated by the uniform commercial code or the common law.
Acme fireworks firm is essentially involved in the service industry. Contractual transactions involving the offering of services are regulated by the common law. Despite the fact that Acme will set up firework displays in the buyer's location, does not mean it has sold any equipment involved in a fireworks display to the buyer. The buyer gets a contract with the Acme to acquire services of the aerial fireworks display. Even though the buyer can buy the equipment and tools required to display fireworks, they lack the necessary capacity to operate the equipment and display the fireworks. As such, the buyer sought the services of Acme fireworks to display the fireworks (Hulbert, Gilmore & Carson, 2015). Consequently, these contracts signed by Acme Fireworks will be governed by the common law.
In addition, when parties to the contract are negotiating terms and conditions, contracts under uniform commercial code mainly emphasis on the quantity being delivered. It gives this emphasis majorly because it allows minor modifications to be made later to the contract. However, under common law, parties discuss the quantity of the subject matter as well as others aspects such as insurance, price, and nature of the work like the actual service being delivered. Other than discussing the price per display, Acme fireworks negotiated about additional components of a valid contract such as insurance to safeguard against injuries that might be incurred to its staff or spectators (Hulbert, Gilmore & Carson, 2015). Acme Company understood that for the common law to legally recognize a contract, it requires the agreement to reflect the exact appearance of terms of an offer.
Elements of a Valid Contract
A contract can be formed between two parties either implicitly or expressly. Implicitly formed contract occurs where parties to the contract indicate their intentions to enter into a contract through their conduct. It heavily relies on implied actions. In express contract, parties to the contract express their intentions either through writing or orally. These parties discuss various aspects of the subject matter concern and come into a legally enforceable agreement in writing or orally (Hunter, 2015). As such, one party must make an offer which is the sole purpose of contract existence. It can be the sale or supply of certain good(s) or services. The other party expresses willingness and capacity to undertake the requirements of an offer through acceptance. In regards to the case, an offer to create firework displays on regular basis was made to Acme by certain large businesses. Acme Fireworks Company expressly accepted the offer showing that a legally enforceable contract was formed between the parties.
Secondly, the case of Acme indicates that the price per display was agreed upon. This is the price that will be used to cater for expenses which Acme will incur in setting upon the firework display as well as the profit to the company. In order for the other businesses party to the contract to enjoy displays of fireworks, they will have to consider the costs involved in delivering such displays. This is known as consideration an essential element of a valid contract. Thirdly, parties entering into a contractual agreement must have clear intentions to create a legal relationship, in the case of breach of contract terms and conditions (Hunter, 2015). Agreements based on business transactions are perceived to be a rebuttable intention to forming legally enforceable contracts. The willingness of businesses to contact Acme fireworks in order to set up fireworks displays and Acme's acceptability of the offer highlights their clear intentions to have a legal relationship.
Another clear indication that Acme formed legally enforceable contracts with the businesses is that they clearly stated the terms and conditions of the contract. The offer was precisely outlined so that the accepting company could effectively understand the requirement. In the return, Acme quoted clear consideration explaining various components to the buyers. The fact that the parties to the contracts separately agreed on the offer and the consideration, illustrates that there was certainty upon terms and conditions of the contracts. Lastly, since the parties involved were legally operating as business entities, it indicates that they had the capacity to enter into a contract. Acme Fireworks Company was a sole proprietorship entity implying that it was a duly registered business entity with legal capacity to enter into a contract. The case quotes other parties to the contract as large businesses which mean that there was a possibility that they were registered, thus possessing legal capacity to contract (Hunter, 2015).
Personal Liability
Acme fireworks company is expected by the law and common expectations to carry out due diligence to ensure the safety of its staffs and spectators. The company is expected to ensure that there are no incidents of injuries or any harm caused to those attending the event. The company should ensure that it is operating with quality firework canisters to avoid instances of malfunctioning leading to stray fireworks that can cause harm to spectators or staff. The staff also should be familiar and well-skilled in such field so as to handle those gadgets appropriately according to instructions. However, when incidents of stray fireworks occur, causing injuries to a spectator, the company can be liable for damages depending on the circumstances (Hunter, 2015). Depending on the circumstance, the injured individual can claim the medical expenses from the firm.
When a fireworks company like Acme is displaying fireworks, it is expected to restrict spectators to a particular distance from their displaying equipment and tools. In most cases, this distance is usually accommodative enough to take into account incidents of stray fireworks without harming spectators. However, if a firework malfunctions and strays resulting in injuries to a person, such a person will be free to claim compensation from the company depending on the circumstances. If such an individual was within the allowed distance from the displaying equipment and tools, will be free to hold the company liable for injuries incurred (Hunter, 2015). The company will be held liable for negligence of failing to carry out due diligence when choosing its firework canisters. The company is expected to rely on high-quality firework canisters which cannot malfunction in course of a performance.
Alternatively, an injured individual will be compensated by the company if they within the restricted distance without knowledge because the company failed to notify them of the restricted distance. To ensure the safety of every person attending the event, it is the duty of the company to notify them of what is expected of them and about the distance, they should maintain in relation to the displaying equipment. However, the company will not be held liable for injuries to an individual who invaded restricted distance regardless the notification from the company. It will be held that the company carried out due diligence in the whole process of setting up the displaying equipment to displaying the fireworks (Hunter, 2015). The injured person acted with negligence causing injuries to themselves regardless of the information provided by the company.
Types of Employment
For a company to achieve its objectives, it requires a motivated workforce possessing varying skills for various functions. Employees are essential to an organization not only because of executing various tasks but they also link the organization and its customers. Satisfied employees are most likely to correspond to satisfied customers (Budd & Bhave, 2010). A company can directly recruit its employees or seek the services of an employment agent who will conduct the process of recruitment on behalf a certain company (principal). There are agency laws to govern this relationship. There are various types of employment which include: One, full and part time employment. Full-time employees are costly to maintain due to their huge packages of benefits but they benefit the company in long-term since they are dedicated and have a strong commitment to a firm. These are the employees who mainly lead a company's strategic directions since they are available to the company throughout. Part-time employees work for a specified number of hours on certain days of the week.
The main advantage of this type of employment is that these employees possess specialized knowledge possessing valuable skills in a specific field. Their expertise enables the company to make well-informed strategic decisions for long-term investments. This enables a company to compete effectively and maintain a competitive edge over its competitors. Another advantage is that they have a strong dedication and commitment to an organization enabling them to perform their duties and responsibilities to perfection (Budd & Bhave, 2010). This makes it easier for the management of an organization to manage the workforce. Among the disadvantages of this type of employment is the cost an organization incurs to attract and retain them. Due to numerous benefits like the full medical cover, full paid holidays and competitive remuneration makes it expensive for a company to maintain. Lastly, most of the employees in this category are unionized which mounts regular pressure to the management to increase their salaries.
Second, casual employees are available to an organization irregularly depending on availability of work. These employees do not expect constant availability of work since they are only called upon when the business demand increase beyond the available capacity. The main advantage of this type of employment is that they are cheap to employ and maintain because they are not engaged on permanent terms (Benach et al., 2004). They are terminated once the business demand declines. Another advantage is that constantly engaged employees, gain valuable skills to perform certain duties enabling the company to acquire quality laborers at a cheap rate. Disadvantages include that these employees do not expect continuity of work and employment because they are only engaged when the business demand surpass the organization's capacity. Lastly, these employees are not obligated to accept offers of job meaning that a company can miss out employees when they need casual employees most (Benach et al., 2004). This could make a company forego certain profitable opportunities.
The third category of employment is a contract and fixed term employment where someone is engaged for a specified period of time in order to supplant an employee currently on leave, to complete a specific project or to undertake a particular responsibility. The length of employment is specified in a written document which in addition states the terms and conditions of employment (Benach et al., 2004). At the end of the specified period, an organization may choose to renew the terms and conditions or terminate the contract as a whole. Advantages of this category include certainty of employment for stipulated period of time. This gives an employee job security according to the terms and conditions of the agreement. Secondly, parties involved can sue in case of breach of terms or termination of the contract before the expiry of the specified period. The disadvantage is that these employees do not enjoy benefits of other categories such as sick leave since they are guided by the contract to achieve their set objective in a fixed time.
Business Entity
Acme Fireworks Company should not operate as a sole proprietorship because the owner is not protected against any liability. In this kind of entity, business and the owner are considered as one and the same thing by the law. Hence in case of liability, recovery can encroach even on the proprietor's personal assets and income if the business assets are unable to meet the entire cost of the liability. In order to protect the proprietor's personal assets against the liabilities of the business, Acme should operate as a limited liability company. This is an entity where its members cannot be held personally liable for its liabilities and debts. It combines the features of a sole proprietorship or partnership with those of corporation (Giesen et al., 2007). In comparison with a corporation, it is easier to form as well as offering more flexibility and protection limiting principal's personal liability and tax return as it only files informational tax.
Conclusion
Acme Fireworks Company is currently operating as a small-scale business but it needs transformation into a limited liability company. Every business operates with the objective of growth (Giesen et al., 2007). The company should not operate with fear of not being able to strike many orders in future; it should strive to enhance the quality of its services and safety to attract more clients. As such, it will be able to maintain its employees, to take advantage of opportunities and it can also be able to venture into other emerging business opportunities. Being a limited liability company, it will be able to compete effectively with other companies.







References
Benach, J., Gimeno, D., Benavides, F. G., Martinez, J. M., & del Mar Torné, M. (2004). Types of employment and health in the European Union. The European Journal of Public Health, 14(3), 314-321.
Budd, J. W., & Bhave, D. (2010). The employment relationship. The SAGE handbook of human resource management, 51-70.
Giesen, E., Berman, S. J., Bell, R., & Blitz, A. (2007). Three ways to successfully innovate your business model. Strategy & Leadership, 35(6), 27-33.
Hulbert, B., Gilmore, A., & Carson, D. (2015). Opportunity recognition by growing SMEs: a managerial or entrepreneurial function?. Journal of Strategic Marketing, 23(7), 616-642.
Hunter, H. (2015). Modern Law of Contracts.