Liability and Its Ramifications
Due Care:
Steps that are taken to show that a company has taken responsibility for the activities that take place within the corporation and have taken the necessary steps to help protect the company, its resources and employees.
Due Diligence:
Continual activities that make sure the protection mechanisms are continually maintained and operational.
Prudent man rule:
To perform duties that prudent people would exercise in similar circumstances.
Downstream liabilities:
When companies come together to work in an integrated manner, special care must be taken to ensure that each party promises to provide the necessary level of protection, liability and responsibility needed which should be clearly defined in the contracts that each party signs.
Legally recognized obligation:
There is a stand of conduct expected of the company to protect others from unreasonable risks. The company must fail to conform to this standard, which results in injury or damage to another.
Proximate causation:
Someone can prove that the damage that was caused was the company's fault.

Types of Laws
Civil law:
Also called Tort.
Deals with wrongs against individuals or companies that result in damages or loss
A civil lawsuit would result in financial restitution instead of jail sentences.
Criminal law:
Is used when an individual's conduct violates the government's laws, which have been developed to protect the public.
Jail sentences are commonly the punishment.
Administrative law:
Deals with regulatory standards that regulate performance and conduct.
Government agencies create these standards, which are usually applied to companies and individuals, within those companies.

Intellectual Property Laws
Trade secret:
The resource that is claimed to be a trade secret must be confidential and protected with certain security precautions and actions.
Copyright:
Protects the expression of the idea of the resource.
Trademark:
Is used to protect a word, name, symbol, sound, shape, colour, device or combination of these.
Patent:
Are given to individuals or companies to grant the owner legal ownership and enable the owner to exclude others from using and copying the innovation covered by the patent.
A patent grants a limited property right for 17 years.