Mistake, Fraud and Duties to Inform in European Contract Law

by Edited by Ruth Sefton-Green

• ISBN13: 9780521093101
• ISBN10: 0521093104
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2009-01-08
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Summary

This examination of twelve case studies about mistake, fraud and duties to inform reveals significant differences about how contract law works in thirteen European legal systems and, despite the fact that the solutions proposed are often similar, what divergent values underlie the legal rules. Whereas some jurisdictions recognise increasing duties to inform in numerous contracts so that the destiny of mistake and fraud (classical defects of consent) may appear to be uncertain, other jurisdictions continue to refuse such duties as a general rule or fail to recognize the need to protect one of the parties where there is an imbalance in bargaining power or information. Avoiding preconceptions as to where and why these differences exist, this book first examines the historical origins and development of defects of consent, then considers the issues from a comparative and critical standpoint.

Table of Contents

Preface

List of contributors

Table of legislation

List of abbreviations

General introduction Ruth Sefton-Green

Mistake, misrepresentation and precontractual duties to inform: the civil law tradition Martin Josef Schermaier

The rise and fall of mistake in the English law of contract John Cartwright

Case studies

Anatole v. Bob

CFlimTne v. Damien

Emile v. Far Eastern Delights

Mr and Mrs Timeless v. Mr and Mrs Careless

Bruno v. The Local Garage

Emmanuel v. The Computer Shop

Cinderella

Estella v. Uriah Heep

Nell v. Scrooge Bank

Zachary

Monstrous Inventions Ltd v. Mary Shelley

Lady Windermere v. Angel

Comparative conclusions Ruth Sefton-Green

Index

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