WGU Business Law for Accountants - D216
UPDATED ACTUAL Exam Questions and
CORRECT Answers
14th Amendment - CORRECT ANSWER - passed in 1868 after the Civil War, provides, in
part, that "[n]o State shall . . . deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process
of law."
action at law - CORRECT ANSWER - File a complaint, jury or judge, judgement, monetary
damages or property
action in equity - CORRECT ANSWER - File a petition, judge, decree, injunction, specific
performance, or rescission
administrative agency - CORRECT ANSWER - A federal or state government agency created
by the legislature to perform a specific function, such as to make and enforce rules pertaining to
the environment.
appellant - CORRECT ANSWER - The party who takes an appeal from one court to another.
appellee - CORRECT ANSWER - The party against whom an appeal is taken—that is, the
party who opposes setting aside or reversing the judgment.
Bill of Rights - CORRECT ANSWER - The first ten amendments to the U.S. Constitution.
binding authority - CORRECT ANSWER - Any source of law that a court must follow when
deciding a case.
breaches - CORRECT ANSWER - To violate a law, by an act or an omission, or to break a
legal obligation that one owes to another person or to society.
,business ethics - CORRECT ANSWER - Ethics in a business context; a consensus of what
constitutes right or wrong behavior in the world of business and the application of moral
principles to situations that arise in a business setting.
case law - CORRECT ANSWER - The rules of law announced in court decisions. Case law
interprets statutes, regulations, constitutional provisions, and other case law.
categorical imperative - CORRECT ANSWER - A concept developed by the philosopher
Immanuel Kant as an ethical guideline for behavior. In deciding whether an action is right or
wrong, or desirable or undesirable, a person should evaluate the action in terms of what would
happen if everybody else in the same situation, or category, acted the same way.
checks and balances - CORRECT ANSWER - The system by which each of the three
branches of the U.S. national government (executive, legislative, and judicial) exercises checks
on the powers of the other branches.
Civil law - CORRECT ANSWER - The branch of law dealing with the definition and
enforcement of all private or public rights, as opposed to criminal matters.
commerce clause - CORRECT ANSWER - The provision in Article I, Section 8, of the U.S.
Constitution that gives Congress the power to regulate interstate commerce.
common law - CORRECT ANSWER - a body of general rules that applied throughout the
entire English realm
compelling government interest - CORRECT ANSWER - A test of constitutionality that
requires the government to have compelling reasons for passing any law that restricts
fundamental rights, such as free speech, or distinguishes between people based on a suspect trait.
concurring opinion - CORRECT ANSWER - A court opinion by one or more judges or
justices who agree with the majority but want to make or emphasize a point that was not made or
emphasized in the majority's opinion.
,Constitutional law - CORRECT ANSWER - Law that is based on the U.S. Constitution and
the constitutions of the various states.
Corporate social responsibility (CSR) - CORRECT ANSWER - The concept that corporations
can and should act ethically and be accountable to society for their actions.
cost-benefit analysis - CORRECT ANSWER - A decision-making technique that involves
weighing the costs of a given action against the benefits of the action.
courts of equity - CORRECT ANSWER - A court that decides controversies and administers
justice according to the rules, principles, and precedents of equity.
courts of law - CORRECT ANSWER - A court in which the only remedies that can be
granted are things of value, such as money damages. In the early English king's courts, courts of
law were distinct from courts of equity.
Criminal law - CORRECT ANSWER - The branch of law that defines and punishes wrongful
actions committed against the public.
cyberlaw - CORRECT ANSWER - An informal term used to refer to all laws governing
electronic communications and transactions, particularly those conducted via the Internet.
damages - CORRECT ANSWER - A monetary award sought as a remedy for a breach of
contract or a tortious act.
defendant - CORRECT ANSWER - One against whom a lawsuit is brought, or the accused
person in a criminal proceeding.
defense - CORRECT ANSWER - Reasons that a defendant offers in an action or suit as to
why the plaintiff should not obtain what he or she is seeking.
, dissenting opinion - CORRECT ANSWER - A court opinion that presents the views of one or
more judges or justices who disagree with the majority's decision.
due process clause - CORRECT ANSWER - The provisions of the Fifth and Fourteenth
Amendments to the U.S. Constitution that guarantee that no person shall be deprived of life,
liberty, or property without due process of law. Similar clauses are found in most state
constitutions.
Duty-based ethics - CORRECT ANSWER - An ethical philosophy rooted in the idea that
every person has certain duties to others, including both humans and the planet. Those duties
may be derived from religious principles or from other philosophical reasoning.
Eighth Amendment - CORRECT ANSWER - Prohibits excessive bail and fines, as well as
cruel and unusual punishment.
Electronic Communications Privacy Act (1986) - CORRECT ANSWER - Prohibits the
interception of information communicated by electronic means.
equal protection clause - CORRECT ANSWER - The provision in the Fourteenth Amendment
to the U.S. Constitution that guarantees that no state will "deny to any person within its
jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws." This clause mandates that state governments treat
similarly situated individuals in a similar manner.
equitable maxims - CORRECT ANSWER - General propositions or principles of law that
have to do with fairness (equity).
establishment clause - CORRECT ANSWER - The provision in the First Amendment to the
U.S. Constitution that prohibits Congress from establishing a state-sponsored religion, as well as
from passing laws that promote religion or show a preference for one religion over another.
ethical reasoning - CORRECT ANSWER - A reasoning process in which an individual links
his or her moral convictions or ethical standards to the particular situation at hand.
UPDATED ACTUAL Exam Questions and
CORRECT Answers
14th Amendment - CORRECT ANSWER - passed in 1868 after the Civil War, provides, in
part, that "[n]o State shall . . . deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process
of law."
action at law - CORRECT ANSWER - File a complaint, jury or judge, judgement, monetary
damages or property
action in equity - CORRECT ANSWER - File a petition, judge, decree, injunction, specific
performance, or rescission
administrative agency - CORRECT ANSWER - A federal or state government agency created
by the legislature to perform a specific function, such as to make and enforce rules pertaining to
the environment.
appellant - CORRECT ANSWER - The party who takes an appeal from one court to another.
appellee - CORRECT ANSWER - The party against whom an appeal is taken—that is, the
party who opposes setting aside or reversing the judgment.
Bill of Rights - CORRECT ANSWER - The first ten amendments to the U.S. Constitution.
binding authority - CORRECT ANSWER - Any source of law that a court must follow when
deciding a case.
breaches - CORRECT ANSWER - To violate a law, by an act or an omission, or to break a
legal obligation that one owes to another person or to society.
,business ethics - CORRECT ANSWER - Ethics in a business context; a consensus of what
constitutes right or wrong behavior in the world of business and the application of moral
principles to situations that arise in a business setting.
case law - CORRECT ANSWER - The rules of law announced in court decisions. Case law
interprets statutes, regulations, constitutional provisions, and other case law.
categorical imperative - CORRECT ANSWER - A concept developed by the philosopher
Immanuel Kant as an ethical guideline for behavior. In deciding whether an action is right or
wrong, or desirable or undesirable, a person should evaluate the action in terms of what would
happen if everybody else in the same situation, or category, acted the same way.
checks and balances - CORRECT ANSWER - The system by which each of the three
branches of the U.S. national government (executive, legislative, and judicial) exercises checks
on the powers of the other branches.
Civil law - CORRECT ANSWER - The branch of law dealing with the definition and
enforcement of all private or public rights, as opposed to criminal matters.
commerce clause - CORRECT ANSWER - The provision in Article I, Section 8, of the U.S.
Constitution that gives Congress the power to regulate interstate commerce.
common law - CORRECT ANSWER - a body of general rules that applied throughout the
entire English realm
compelling government interest - CORRECT ANSWER - A test of constitutionality that
requires the government to have compelling reasons for passing any law that restricts
fundamental rights, such as free speech, or distinguishes between people based on a suspect trait.
concurring opinion - CORRECT ANSWER - A court opinion by one or more judges or
justices who agree with the majority but want to make or emphasize a point that was not made or
emphasized in the majority's opinion.
,Constitutional law - CORRECT ANSWER - Law that is based on the U.S. Constitution and
the constitutions of the various states.
Corporate social responsibility (CSR) - CORRECT ANSWER - The concept that corporations
can and should act ethically and be accountable to society for their actions.
cost-benefit analysis - CORRECT ANSWER - A decision-making technique that involves
weighing the costs of a given action against the benefits of the action.
courts of equity - CORRECT ANSWER - A court that decides controversies and administers
justice according to the rules, principles, and precedents of equity.
courts of law - CORRECT ANSWER - A court in which the only remedies that can be
granted are things of value, such as money damages. In the early English king's courts, courts of
law were distinct from courts of equity.
Criminal law - CORRECT ANSWER - The branch of law that defines and punishes wrongful
actions committed against the public.
cyberlaw - CORRECT ANSWER - An informal term used to refer to all laws governing
electronic communications and transactions, particularly those conducted via the Internet.
damages - CORRECT ANSWER - A monetary award sought as a remedy for a breach of
contract or a tortious act.
defendant - CORRECT ANSWER - One against whom a lawsuit is brought, or the accused
person in a criminal proceeding.
defense - CORRECT ANSWER - Reasons that a defendant offers in an action or suit as to
why the plaintiff should not obtain what he or she is seeking.
, dissenting opinion - CORRECT ANSWER - A court opinion that presents the views of one or
more judges or justices who disagree with the majority's decision.
due process clause - CORRECT ANSWER - The provisions of the Fifth and Fourteenth
Amendments to the U.S. Constitution that guarantee that no person shall be deprived of life,
liberty, or property without due process of law. Similar clauses are found in most state
constitutions.
Duty-based ethics - CORRECT ANSWER - An ethical philosophy rooted in the idea that
every person has certain duties to others, including both humans and the planet. Those duties
may be derived from religious principles or from other philosophical reasoning.
Eighth Amendment - CORRECT ANSWER - Prohibits excessive bail and fines, as well as
cruel and unusual punishment.
Electronic Communications Privacy Act (1986) - CORRECT ANSWER - Prohibits the
interception of information communicated by electronic means.
equal protection clause - CORRECT ANSWER - The provision in the Fourteenth Amendment
to the U.S. Constitution that guarantees that no state will "deny to any person within its
jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws." This clause mandates that state governments treat
similarly situated individuals in a similar manner.
equitable maxims - CORRECT ANSWER - General propositions or principles of law that
have to do with fairness (equity).
establishment clause - CORRECT ANSWER - The provision in the First Amendment to the
U.S. Constitution that prohibits Congress from establishing a state-sponsored religion, as well as
from passing laws that promote religion or show a preference for one religion over another.
ethical reasoning - CORRECT ANSWER - A reasoning process in which an individual links
his or her moral convictions or ethical standards to the particular situation at hand.
