Exam (elaborations)
The Law of Contract Questions with Solutions 2024
- Course
- Institution
Exam of 6 pages for the course law of contracts at law of contracts (The Law of Contract)
[Show more]
Content preview
The Law of ContractIntroduction - answer The set of rules and principles that governs these transactions is
the law of contract.
However, societies without contracts are conceivable in situations where the State or
the community takes care of everything, including the provision of the necessities of life.
In such a society, the need to contract with other people is absent.
Exchange - answer The core of a typical contract is exchange: one party gives
something to another party and receives something in return.
However, It is not true for all contracts. In particular, in the case of gratuitous contracts,
such as a promise to make a gift, the law can make the promise enforceable even if
only one party will benefit from it.
1) Sources of Contract Law - answer Categorization on the basis of sources allows us
to distinguish between three types of rules relevant to contract law: rules that are made
by the contracting parties, rules that emerge from the official national, European and
supranational sources, and, informal rules that are made by others.
a) Rules made by the contracting parties - answer Freedom of contract and general
conditions
Freedom of Contract - answerContract law is special in at least one important respect:
the question of what the law is can be decided by the parties themselves. This is
because one of the most important principles in this field is freedom of contract: not only
are parties free to decide whether they want to contract, but they can also determine the
contents of their contract. This means that no one is obliged to enter into a contract, but
if one does, one is bound by it,
General Conditions - answerIn practice, parties often make use of standardized sets of
rules that are suited to their own interests. So-called general conditions are one very
popular type of such standardized rules. Almost all professional parties use such
conditions for the contracts they conclude.
b) Rules that emerge from the official national, European and supranational sources -
answerDefault and mandatory rules, national rules, European rules, and supranational
rules.
Default Rules - answerParty agreement alone cannot set all rights and obligations under
the contract. Often, parties only discuss those elements of the contract that they
, consider essential, but not many other aspects. In so far as such matters are not
covered by general conditions, the law should provide so-called default (or "facilitative")
rules that are automatically applicable if the parties have not made any other
arrangements.
Mandatory Rules - answerIt may also happen that parties would like to contract in a way
that is considered contrary to law or morality. In that case, the law must intervene with
so-called mandatory rules that declare such a contract void or at least avoidable by one
of the parties. These default and mandatory laws flow from the "official" national,
European, and supranational sources.
National Rules - answerAt the national level, the official contract law is primarily
produced by the legislature and the courts.
In civil law countries, general rules on contract law can be found in civil codes. In
common law countries, contract law is laid down in cases decided by courts, but
statutes (Sale of Goods Act 1979 in England) have come to play an increasingly
important role in the last century.
European Rules - answerEuropean legislature has promulgated almost 20 directives
with relevance to contract law, which the Member States have had to implement in their
national legislation.
Supranational Rules - answerA third source of official contract law consists of
supranational rules. The most important international convention in this field is is the
1980 United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods
(CISG).
Ex: As Germany and the Netherlands are both a party to the CISG, a contract between
a German and a Dutch businessperson is therefore governed by the rules of the
convention on, e.g. formation of contract and remedies.
Informal Rules (Soft Law) - answerContract law is influenced by rules that are not
officially binding but have the status of soft law. This soft law can take the form of model
rules, which are intended to influence the setting of norms or deciding of cases by the
formal institutions, or can be a source of inspiration for parties having to draft a contract.
In addition to these two functions, soft law rules have come to play an important role in
legal research and in teaching the law.
Ex: Unidroit Principles of International Commercial Contracts (UP) of 1994, the
Principles of European Contract Law (PECL) of 1995.
2) Formation of a Binding Contract - answerThis is different from the moment a party
promises to do or to give something in the future. The law should provide an answer to
the question whether such promise is enforceable or not. No legal system allows all
promises to be enforceable. Of the vast majority of promises that we make in our life,
The benefits of buying summaries with Stuvia:
Guaranteed quality through customer reviews
Stuvia customers have reviewed more than 700,000 summaries. This how you know that you are buying the best documents.
Quick and easy check-out
You can quickly pay through credit card or Stuvia-credit for the summaries. There is no membership needed.
Focus on what matters
Your fellow students write the study notes themselves, which is why the documents are always reliable and up-to-date. This ensures you quickly get to the core!
Frequently asked questions
What do I get when I buy this document?
You get a PDF, available immediately after your purchase. The purchased document is accessible anytime, anywhere and indefinitely through your profile.
Satisfaction guarantee: how does it work?
Our satisfaction guarantee ensures that you always find a study document that suits you well. You fill out a form, and our customer service team takes care of the rest.
Who am I buying these notes from?
Stuvia is a marketplace, so you are not buying this document from us, but from seller jopewa. Stuvia facilitates payment to the seller.
Will I be stuck with a subscription?
No, you only buy these notes for $15.49. You're not tied to anything after your purchase.
Can Stuvia be trusted?
4.6 stars on Google & Trustpilot (+1000 reviews)
73091 documents were sold in the last 30 days
Founded in 2010, the go-to place to buy study notes for 14 years now