Contracts Commons^™

Of Textualism, Party Autonomy, And Good Faith, Michael P. Van Alstine

William & Mary Law Review

No abstract provided.

Freedom Of Contract And The Securities Laws: Opting Out Of Securities Regulation By Private Agreement, Elaine A. Welle

Washington and Lee Law Review

No abstract provided.

“A Delicate Interplay”: Resolving The Contract/Corporate Law Tension In Mergers, Celia R. Taylor

Sturm College of Law: Faculty Scholarship

Mergers are rampant in the corporate world and are the subject of extensive analysis by courts and commentators. Current analysis of the merger process focuses on the role of corporate law rather than the role of contract law. By overlooking contract law, the prevalent analysis fails to reach a correct resolution of the inherent tension between contractual obligations arising from merger agreements and corporate fiduciary duties governing directors' behavior during the merger process. This Article proposes a superior resolution that properly recognizes and values contractual obligations while upholding corporate fiduciary obligations.

Caught Between Scylla And Charybdis: Law & Economics As A Useful Tool For Feminist Legal Theorists , Darren Bush

American University Journal of Gender, Social Policy & the Law

No abstract provided.

Myths, Miscues, And Misconceptions: No-Aid Separationism And The Establishment Clause, Carl H. Esbeck

Faculty Publications

In neutrality theory the recipients of vouchers, grants, and purchase-of-service contracts are eligible to participate as providers in government social service programs without regard to their religious character. Indeed, religious beliefs and practices are prohibited bases for screening out those who want to be welfare program providers. Notable examples of congressional social service legislation conforming to the rule of religious neutrality are the ‘charitable choice‘ feature imbedded in the Welfare Reform Act of 1996 and the Community Services Block Grant Act of 1998, as well as the provision allowing issuance of child care vouchers to indigent parents in the Child …

The Sky Is Falling (Or Is It?): International Contracts And The Y2k Problem, Mark B. Baker

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

Y2K problems at this point in time are reasonably foreseeable due to the amount of attention given the subject. Contracting parties should examine potential Y2K problems arising internally and address them before January 1, 2000. Yet the extent of Y2K problems, be they widespread or solitary occurrences, remains unforeseeable and unpredictable. Even those parties having adequately addressed internal Y2K problems can experience difficulties due to external parties having failed to become Y2K-compliant. This "second tier" of unforeseeability supports the use of excused performance, but the "first tier" foreseeability that Y2K problems potentially exist prevent viable use of the defense. In …

An Economic Analysis Of The Guaranty Contract, Avery W. Katz

Faculty Scholarship

Guaranty arrangements, in which one person stands as surety for a second person's obligation to a third, are ubiquitous in commercial transactions and in commercial law. In recent years, however, scholarly attention to the topic has been scant; and no one has systematically analyzed this body of law and practice from an economic policy perspective. Accordingly, this Article attempts to outline the basic economic logic underlying the guaranty relationship, and applies the results to a variety of specific issues in government policy and private planning. It poses and answers three main questions: First, why would a creditor prefer to make …

The Law Of Contract And The Concept Of Change: Public And Private Attempts To Regulate Modification, Waiver, And Estoppel, David Snyder

Scholarly Articles in Law Reviews & Journals

No abstract provided.

Is There A Duty To Negotiate In Good Faith?, Michael Philip Furmston

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

One of the most interesting questions concerning modern contract lawyers is whether, and if so when, there may be a duty on parties to a contract to negotiate in good faith? This may seem an odd question for an English lawyer to raise, granted the refusal of the House of Lords in Walford v. Miles [1992] 2 A.C. 128 to recognise even the effectiveness of an agreement to negotiate in good faith but this case has not escaped cogent criticism (Neill (1992) 108 L.Q.R. 405) and it rests on an axiom (that this is a duty which cannot be enforced) …

Self-Help In Contract Law: An Examination And Proposal, Celia R. Taylor

Sturm College of Law: Faculty Scholarship

Contrary to the common perception that Americans are overly litigious, many disputes never reach the court room. One reason for this is the availability of self-help--actions taken without recourse to third party intervention. The author explores self- help doctrine in American commercial law. Specifically, she considers the availabilityof self-help under the Uniform Commercial Code and the Restatement (Second)of Contracts. She shows that self-help is widely supported in these sources but that in practice it is not properly understood or applied. She argues that self-help should be encouraged uniformly in all commercial transactionsand suggests an addition to existing statutes that would …

Bloomer Girl Revisited Or How To Frame An Unmade Picture, Victor P. Goldberg

Faculty Scholarship

Nearly all contracts casebooks feature the saga of Shirley MacLaine's suit against Twentieth Century Fox arising from the cancellation of the proposed film Bloomer Girl. None really get the story right. To be fair, none try. The case is a vehicle for exploring the obligation of the victim of the breach of an employment contract to take alternative employment. If MacLaine refused an offer of alternative employment that was not "different and inferior," her failure to mitigate would mean that the earnings she would have received would be offset against the damages; so, asked the court, was the alternative …

Are Statutes Really "Legislative Bargains"? The Failure Of The Contract Analogy In Statutory Interpretation, Mark L. Movsesian

Faculty Publications

Recent scholarship draws an analogy between contract and statutory interpretation. In this Article, Professor Movsesian explores and rejects that analogy. There are key differences between contracts and statutes, he argues; the intentionalism of contemporary contract law is inappropriate in the context of statutory interpretation. After critically examining the literature on the topic and demonstrating the operative distinctions between contracts and statutes, Professor Movsesian provides a useful illustration in the form of the famous case of Church of the Holy Trinity v. United States. Professor Movsesian shows how a comparison of contract and statutory interpretation sheds light on a number of …

Intervention And Joinder As Of Right In International Arbitration, S. I. Strong

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

For the purpose of this Article, an existing party is said to have a claim to join a third party into an arbitration as of right when (1) in the third party's absence, complete relief cannot be accorded among those already parties to the arbitration or (2) the third party asserts an interest relating to the subject of the arbitration and is so situated that the disposition of the arbitration in the third party's absence may (a) as a practical matter impair or impede the third party's ability to protect that interest or (b) leave any of the persons already …

Comparative Law In Action: Promissory Estoppel, The Civil Law, And The Mixed Jurisdiction, David Snyder

Scholarly Articles in Law Reviews & Journals

No abstract provided.

Comparative Law In Action: Promissory Estoppel, The Civil Law, And The Mixed Jurisdiction, David V. Snyder

Articles by Maurer Faculty

No abstract provided.

Notice And Notification Under The Revised Uniform Partnership Act: Some Suggested Changes, J. Dennis Hynes

Publications

This Article addresses the decision by the drafters of the revised Uniform Partnership Act (1996) (RUPA) to reduce the traditional defenses available to partnerships in apparent authority cases. RUPA eliminated the requirement that apparent authority claims against a partnership be based on the claimant's reasonable expectations. Under RUPA a partnership is liable for a partner's unauthorized act even when the claimant had reason to know the act was unauthorized. A defense based on the claimant's knowledge is effective only when the claimant actually knows--is cognitively aware--that the act was unauthorized. This Article argues that this places an unfair burden on …

Liberty, Trade, And The Uniform Commercial Code: When Should Default Rules Be Based On Business Practices?, Kerry Lynn Macintosh

William & Mary Law Review

No abstract provided.

Unilateral Competitive Effects Theories In Merger Analysis, Jonathan Baker

Scholarly Articles in Law Reviews & Journals

No abstract provided.

Reviving Jacob And Youngs, Inc. V. Kent: Material Breach Doctrine Reconsidered, Amy B. Cohen

Faculty Scholarship

Determining whether a material breach has occurred under current law involves a weighing of several factors, a determination that often seems either completely without logic or precision, or self-evident and conclusory. Thus, parties are left not knowing what to do and what risks they may be assuming. The problem with the current application of material breach doctrine is in large part a result of an absence of focus. The courts apply the test without articulating any foundation or context on which it is based. The law in this area could be much improved if courts would return to Judge Cardozo's …

The Role Of A Central Bank In A Bubble Economy, Geoffrey P. Miller

Cardozo Law Review

In recent years, price bubbles appear to have developed in the real estate markets in several developed economies, including the United States, Australia, the United Kingdom, the Nordic countries, and Japan. Often these price increases in land have been accompanied by rapid run-ups in the price of equity securities in the domestic market. Because of the importance of real estate and equity security prices to economic activity, real estate and share price bubbles can damage the economy if they break and lead to price crashes.

Vanity And Vexation: Shifting The Focus To Media Conduct, Jane E. Kirtley

William & Mary Bill of Rights Journal

Lawsuits brought by corporations against news organizations during the last few years demonstrate that it is no longer sufficient for the press to get its facts straight. With some industries literally fighting for their lives, a new legal climate has encourage litigation that deflects bad publicity by shifting the focus away from the traditional issue of accuracy to a critical examination of the news media's newsgathering techniques. Concerns about the reaction of courts to unorthodox reporting methods may prompt news organizations to censor themselves, but the author argues that facing the threat of mega-verdicts or contempt citations should be regarded …

Tortious Interference: The Limits Of Common Law Liability For Newsgathering, Sandra S. Baron, Hilary Lane, David A. Schulz

William & Mary Bill of Rights Journal

Media lawyers have recently been confronted with a relatively new source of litigation: the tort of intentional interference with contractual relations, which arises out of confidentiality agreements. In this Article, the authors identify the elements of tortious interference with contracts and examine the key issues presented when this tort is applied to newsgathering. The authors then consider a potential defense based on the First Amendment. In light of the public and constitutional interests at stake, the authors conclude that the breach of a confidentiality agreement should not sustain a tortious interference claim when the press is involved in newsgathering activity.

Habermas And The Postal Rule, Peter Goodrich

Cardozo Law Review

It seems somewhat churlish at the end of so much discussion, at the terminus of the circulation of so extensive a commentary and critical appraisal of a single text, to offer further doubts, to intimate certain additional, and worse, extraneous criticisms of Jurgen's contribution to jurisprudence. Nonetheless, there is a tangible theme of misunderstanding, noncomprehension, and failed communication that has accompanied the debate in this conference and can act as the proximate emblem of the following intervention. This essay will simply suggest that there is little in Habermas's study of legal discourse and of the conditions under which the rule …

Mandatory Arbitration: Alternative Dispute Resolution Or Coercive Dispute Suppression?, Sharona Hoffman

Faculty Publications

The enforceability of mandatory arbitration policies contained in employment contracts between employees and their direct employers remains an open question, even after the Supreme Court's 1991 decision in Gilmer v. Interstate Johnson Lane Corp. While Gilmer gave effect to a mandatory arbitration clause in a contract between a securities broker and his licensing exchange, the Court noted that the contract at issue was not an ordinary employment contract between employer and employee. The Court declined to decide whether arbitration agreements in ordinary employment contracts are per se enforceable under the Federal Arbitration Act or whether these provisions are exempt from …

Oil And Gas: Roye Realty & Developing V. Watson--An Answer To The Take-Or-Pay Royalty Issue In Oklahoma Or Simply More Confusion?, James Muenker

Oklahoma Law Review

No abstract provided.

Rethinking A Corporation’S Obligations To Creditors, Steven L. Schwarcz

Cardozo Law Review

No single body of law presently governs a corporation's obligations to creditors. However, disparate laws, starting from different perspectives, contribute to a patchwork of obligations that is poorly understood. Consequently, corporate directors have little guidance when balancing creditor and shareholder rights under corporate restructurings, securitizations, and leveraged transactions.

Commentators who have grappled with this issue focus almost exclusively on the fiduciary duty of a corporation's board of directors to shareholders. Some argue that only shareholders should be entitled to the duty; others argue that the duty should be extended to creditors under various circumstances. This Article maintains that both approaches …

Compensating Caregiving Relatives: Abandoning The Family Member Rule In Contracts, Jonathan S. Henes

Cardozo Law Review

The law presumes that a person who performs a valuable service for another will be compensated. However, a limited exception to this principle exists when the services are performed between family members. This exception, also known as the family member rule, is a nineteenth century creation that arose from the courts' understanding of the dynamics of the nineteenth century household. However, the household of the nineteenth century has all but disappeared from contemporary society. With the disappearance of this household, the issue that arises is whether the family member rule is still necessary. This Note argues that it is not …

Circuit Court Erie Errors And The District Court's Dilemma: From Roto-Lith And The Mirror Image Rule To Octagon Gas And Asset Securitization, Nikiforos Mathews

Cardozo Law Review

Part I of this Note examines the mistake made by the Tenth Circuit in Octagon Gas. It further discusses the related problem inherent in a district court's belief that it is bound by a circuit court's previous Erie decision in light of the recent Winter Panel decision. Part II demonstrates that, despite the doctrine of precedent, district courts are not invariably bound by the diversity decisions of their circuit courts under the modem Erie doctrine, and therefore, should independently determine the state issues before them. Part III returns to Winter Panel and examines how the District Court of Massachusetts …

Identifying Horizontal Price Fixing In The Electronic Marketplace, Jonathan Baker

Scholarly Articles in Law Reviews & Journals

No abstract provided.

Sovereignty And Regionalism, Horacio A. Grigera Naón

Scholarly Articles in Law Reviews & Journals

No abstract provided.