Business Law Assignment

Topic: Case 1 – Tahsin Hasan vs Bangladesh University of Professionals

From To
Tanvir Islam Dr. Shima Zaman
Roll – 17221012 Professor
Section – B Business Law
Department of Finance and Department of Finance and
Banking, Batch 02 Banking
Bangladesh University of Bangladesh University of
Professionals Professionals
 Case 1 – Tahsin Hasan vs Bangladesh University of Professionals

Case Summary
Tahsin Hasan, a cheerleader for the University of Waterloo (outside Dhaka), has threatened a
lawsuit against BUP to recover damages for injuries, suffered during a volleyball game the
previous year between the two universities. While performing acrobatic routines during the half-
time entertainment, the BUP team returned very close to the cheerleaders. Tahsin, who was the
top figure in the pyramid routine, fell and tore a knee ligament. His lawyers claim BUP players
acted deliberately or negligently to disrupt the routine, and are demanding 175,000 taka in
medical and emotional charges. BUP players deny the claim, claiming the pyramid was unstable
and just happened to fall as the players were passing by. No investigation has been carried out
other than brief, informal phone conversations with the two BUP players who are still students
Strong/Weak Points
Strong Points
 A lawsuit has only been threatened, not filed, which might suggest that the lawyers are
trying to avoid arbitration
 Arbitration would only be avoided if Tahsin doesn’t have a good case against BUP
 If arbitration is followed, the money spent on the procedures would be quite significant
compared to the damages claimed
 The lawsuit is being filed by an individual against an institution, BUP has the upper hand
in bargaining power

Weak Points

 No proper investigation has been carried out

 What transpired during the conversation between the players and the lawyers is unknown
 The BUP team passed quite close to the formation which is exactly when the accident
occurred
 BUP is a rising university and would like to maintain a clean reputation, both home and
abroad
 If the lawsuit is filed, it is highly probable it will be filed outside Dhaka, since University
of Waterloo is outside Dhaka, which would be a hassle for BUP
Mode Suggested
BUP would want a quick settlement to prevent the hassle of travelling outside Dhaka. It would
also want to avoid the tarnishing of its reputation which arbitration would do. Moreover, BUP
doesn’t know what transpired during the phone conversation and no investigation has been
carried out either. Arbitration would prove risky if the case went against BUP, which too is a
comparatively long procedure
It seems that Tahsin’s lawyers too want a negotiation. However, if during negotiations, they are
unhappy due to the unfair bargaining power, they might stop negotiations and litigate, which
would go tarnish BUP’s reputation
Mediation between the two parties might be the preferred choice as it would satisfy BUP’s needs
of a quick judgement, untarnished reputation and it wouldn’t risk losing the case due to the
uncertainty of the transpired conversations. Tahsin’s lawyers won’t be able to complain of
unequal bargaining powers. However, arbitration might be preferred if the topics of the
conversation can be known from the BUP players, who are still registered students