82170 - Commercial and International Law

Learning outcomes

The integrated course “Labour and Commercial Law” aims to provide students with a comprehensive understanding of the legal framework regulating business activities and employment relationships in both national and international contexts. Upon completion of the course, students will be able to: - understand the fundamental principles of business, company, competition, and labour law; - identify and apply the appropriate legal forms and contracts for conducting business and managing employment relationships; - compare civil law and common law systems, particularly regarding company structures and international contracts; - interpret corporate governance principles and the rights and responsibilities of directors and shareholders; - use legal tools to manage labour relations and adapt to emerging models of work; - integrate knowledge of commercial and labour law to effectively organize and manage the factors of production — labour and capital — within firms. The course equips students with the essential legal competences for operating in complex organizational and business environments at both domestic and international levels.

Course contents

1. Introduction to Corporate Law and different types of companies.
2. Partnerships.
3. Joint-stock companies.
4. Corporate governance and directors' duties and responsibilities.
5. Auditors' duties and responsibilities.
6. Corporate Control, corporate groups, takeovers.
7. Transformation, merger and demerger.


8. Introduction to international contract law (Private international law, lex mercatoria and international common law).
9. Choice of applicable law.
10. Conclusion of contracts.
11. Implementation, termination and pathology.
12. Different types of contracts.

Readings/Bibliography

Bruno, Foundations of Business and Company Law. US, UK, Italy and the European Context, Giappichelli, Torino, 2025, chapters 3, 4, 5, 6.

Kraakman - Armour - Davies - Enriques et al., The Anatomy of Corporate Law: A Comparative and Functional Approach, OUP, Oxford, 2017, chapters 1, 2, 5, 7, 8.

Cavalieri - Salvatore, An Introduction to International Contract Law, Giappichelli, 2024, chapters 1, 2, 3, 4, 7, 8, 9.

These texts provide comprehensive coverage of the lecture topics. Additional teaching materials, including slides, will be available on the “Virtuale” platform to support students’ learning.

Teaching methods

Frontal lectures supported by power point presentations.

The presentations will be made available to students.

Class Activity: Moot Court–Style Case Discussion

Students can participate in a class discussion based on a fictional legal case (moot court style).

Students will be divided into groups, and each group will represent and defend one party in the case.

Each group will have 30 minutes to study the case.In the following 30 minutes, each group will have 15 minutes to present and defend its position.§Students who are not presenting on that day will serve as the jury.

How to register:

Please send me an email to register. Deadline: 01.03.2027 (march 1, 2027).

Both attending students and those who do not regularly attend classes (or have not attended so far) are welcome to participate. After registration, students will be assigned to groups.

The activity will take place during the last class or classes of the course, depending on the number of participants.

Participation in this activity is worth 2 additional points, which will be added to the grade obtained in the written exam.

Assessment methods

Written exam. Three open-ended questions.

Each question is worth up to 10 points. Honors (with distinction) may be awarded in cases of particularly good overall performance.

With regard to assessments, the use of AI is strictly prohibited. Any use of AI constitutes a breach of academic integrity.

Teaching tools

Power point presentations will be uploaded on the Virtuale platiform.

Office hours

See the website of Lara Archivolti