Contracts Commons^™

Dangers Of Deference To Form Arbitration Provisions, Amy J. Schmitz

Faculty Publications

This Article is part of my larger project exploring what I call "contracting culture," which borrows from legal realism and relational contract theory by considering contextual factors such as negotiators' relations, understandings, and values. As part of this project, I am pursuing various threads, including empirical studies of how contracting realities impact arbitration. In this Article, however, I focus on how these realities in business to consumer contracts combine with the Federal Arbitration Act and formulaic contract law to foster dangerous deference to form arbitration provisions. The Article then invites procedural reforms and offers suggestions for regulations aimed to temper …

The Failure Of Economic Interpretations Of The Law Of Contact Damages, Nathan B. Oman

Faculty Publications

The law of contracts is complex but remarkably stable. What we lack is a widely accepted interpretation of that law as embodying a coherent set of normative choices. Some scholars have suggested that either economic efficiency or personal autonomy provide unifying principles of contract law. These two approaches, however, seem incommensurable, which suggests that we must reject at least one of them in order to have a coherent theory. This Article dissents from this view and has a simple thesis: Economic accounts of the current doctrine governing contract damages have failed, but efficiency arguments remain key to any adequate theory …

Introduction: Private Ordering In A Globalizing World: Still Searching For The Basics Of Contract, Peer Zumbansen

Indiana Journal of Global Legal Studies

Governing Contracts - Public and Private Perspectives, Symposium. Osgoode Hall Law School, Toronto, November 9-10, 2006

The New Public Contracting: Public Versus Private Ordering?, Peter Vincent-Jones

Indiana Journal of Global Legal Studies

This article explores the hybrid character of contemporary public service organization with specific reference to the emergence in Britain over the last twenty-five years of a novel mode of governance, the "New Public Contracting." The New Public Contracting governs an ever-expanding range of aspects of modern life through contracting regimes directed at the attainment of particular policy purposes. In Britain, this mode of governance has been problematic in that many contracting regimes have failed to respond adequately to public needs. While the trend toward privatization may be politically irreversible, the role of the state should be to help establish the …

An Administrative Law Perspective On Government Social Service Contracts: Outsourcing Prison Health Care In New York City, Alfred C. Aman

Indiana Journal of Global Legal Studies

This paper explores how administrative law can mitigate the democracy deficit that may occur when privatization shifts political debate into relatively private arenas, changes its focus, or precludes debate altogether.I t also argues that the prevailing form and key terms of globalization in the United States derive from neo-liberalism, particularly in the binary division of public/private and their conflation with legal regulation and market responsiveness, respectively. This paper centers specifically on a case study involving the outsourcing of health care for prisoners by a private, for-profit health care provider, Prison Health Services, using it as a means for exploring how …

The Role Of Contracts And Networks In Public Governance: The Importance Of The "Social Epistemology" Of Decision Making, Karl-Heinz Ladeur

Indiana Journal of Global Legal Studies

This article addresses the role of public contracts and of public-private networks in relation to the new cognitive infrastructure of postmodern societies and the rise of an experimental rationality. The use of contracts in public law has evolved: it is no longer just a new version of the administrative decision; it is now used as a means in a broad process of breaking up the permeability of public administration. New modes of contracting are a response to increasing fragmentation of interests in industry and in society as a whole. This evolution has also given rise to the concept of the …

Changing Contract Lenses: Unexpected Supervening Events In English, New Zealand, U.S., Japanese, And International Sales Law And Practice, Luke Nottage

Indiana Journal of Global Legal Studies

This article compares differences in the reasoning underlying contractual relationships between English and New Zealand law and U.S. and Japanese law. It then builds upon an existing framework by adding the notion of didactic formality to identify another important contrast between the laws of these countries. It also discusses how CISG and UPICC fit in to this spectrum. The article concludes by questioning "strong convergence" theory in commercial law worldwide.

Governing Contracts – Public and Private Perspectives, Symposium. Osgoode Hall Law School, Toronto, November 9-10, 2006

Molecular Federalism And The Structures Of Private Lawmaking, David V, Snyder

Indiana Journal of Global Legal Studies

This article explores "molecular federalism." Private lawmakers-ranging from familiar organizations like the American Law Institute and the New York Stock Exchange to less well known ones, like the International Chamber of Commerce and associations of banks-are here envisioned as part of a federalist scheme that operates at a "molecular" level rather than at the level of the state. The function and legitimacy of private lawmakers, and the strengths and weaknesses of private lawmaking, are assessed under the rubric of federalism. The article takes up both horizontal and vertical aspects of molecular federalism, considering the possibilities of competitive private lawmaking and …

The True Lex Mercatoria: Law Beyond The State, Ralf Michaels

Indiana Journal of Global Legal Studies

Is there an anational lexr meratoria, a "global law without a state?" The debate seems infinite. Some argue that the rules, institutions, and procedures of international arbitration have now achieved a sufficient degree both of autonomy from the state and of legal character that they represent such an anational law. Others respond that whatever law merchant may exist is really state law-dependent on national norms and the freedom of contract they provide, and on the enforceability of arbitral awards by national courts. This paper suggests that the dichotomy of anational law and state law is false. Although an anational law …

The Making Of Transnational Contract Law, Graf-Peter Calliess

Indiana Journal of Global Legal Studies

The definition and creation of contract law is entrenched in a common understanding of the strong role of the modern state in the administration of justice. This article argues that this understanding is currently subject to a fundamental transformation as a result of the increasing demand for legal certainty in cross-border transactions. Traditional concepts of private international law, mainly the law of conflicts and multilateral treaty harmonization, have proven unable to keep pace with globalization, allowing private actors to step in and gain a dominant position in providing legal services to international commerce. The resulting privatization of lawmaking leads to …

Civil Society Constitutionalism: The Power Of Contract Law, Marc Amstutz, Adreas Abegg, Vaios Karavas

Indiana Journal of Global Legal Studies

This article argues that the vision of a social law of contract is exhibited in the judgment of the Swiss Federal Court in Post v. Verein gegen Tierfabriken ("VgT"). The judgment is one of a law of contract that interacts with a community of the subjects instead of the individual subjects of a community. This paper contends that law today has the task of providing for the areas of social autonomy from which "civil society" is built up and in which, at the same time, the increasing social fragmentation can be overcome piecemeal. The article argues that conceiving contract law …

Relational Contract And The Nature Of Private Ordering: A Comment On Vincent-Jones, David Campbell

Indiana Journal of Global Legal Studies

This paper focuses on the enormous growth of contract in the public sector over the last twenty years as part of the development of the "new public management." In the United Kingdom, the most penetrating assessment of the significance of this growth for the law of contract, its theory and its use, is Peter Vincent-Jones's The New Public Contracting, the thrust of which has been the basis of Vincent-Jones's contribution to this issue, The New Public Contracting: Public versus Private Ordering? In this paper, the author examines the welfarism of public sector contracting by means of a comment on Vincent-Jones's …

The Law Of Society: Governance Through Contract, Peter Zumbansen

Indiana Journal of Global Legal Studies

This paper focuses on contract law as a central field in contemporary regulatory practice. In recent years, "governance by contract" has emerged as the central concept in the context of privatization, domestic and transnational commercial relations, and law-and-development projects. Meanwhile, as a result of the neo-formalist attack on contract law, "governance of contract" through contract adjudication, consumer protection law, and judicial intervention into private law relations has come under severe pressure. Building on early historical critique of the formalist foundations of an allegedly private law of the market, the paper assesses the current justifications for contractual governance and posits that …

Brief For Professors James D. Cox Et Al. As Amici Curiae In Support Of Petitioners, Stoneridge Investment Partners V. Scientific-Atlanta, No. 06-43 (U.S. June 11, 2007), Donald C. Langevoort

U.S. Supreme Court Briefs

No abstract provided.

Agent Design Of Smart License Management System Using Gaia Methodology, Qian Zhao, Yu Zhou, Mark Perry

Computer Science Publications

Modern software services and data centers require a license management system to regulate the agreements that have been reached between subscriber and provider. License management helps to track usage and protect service from abuse. License agreements provide the basis for enforcement and regulation. The automation of license agreements is desired by providers and subscribers to improve transaction efficiency, give flexibility, and minimize unwanted cost.

We have proposed a framework, called SmArt (Semantic Agreement) system, that enables agreement automation in the autonomic computing context using ontology and agent technologies. This paper applies the SmArt system to the domain of license management …

The Failure Of Economic Interpretations Of The Law Of Contract Damages, Nathan B. Oman

Washington and Lee Law Review

The law of contracts is complex but remarkably stable. What we lack is a widely accepted interpretation of that law as embodying a coherent set of normative choices. Some scholars have suggested that either economic efficiency or personal autonomy provide unifying principles of contract law. These two approaches, however, seem incommensurable, which suggests that we must reject at least one of them in order to have a coherent theory. This Article dissents from this view and has a simple thesis: Economic accounts of the current doctrine governing contract damages have failed, but efficiency arguments remain key to any adequate theory …

The Dubious Upgrade Of International Development Contracts, Gabriel Swiney

Brigham Young University International Law & Management Review

No abstract provided.

Toward A Fairer Model Of Consumer Assent To Standard Form Contracts: In Defense Of Restatement Subsection 211(3), Wayne R. Barnes

Washington Law Review

Standard form contracts permeate our very existence, and now even include contracts we assent to online by way of "clickwrap" and "browsewrap" methods. Notwithstanding the ever-increasing presence and complexity of such standard form contracts, both offline and online, the law of contracts in this area has remained fairly static since before the nineteenth century. The only meaningful salve to the problem of misinformed assent to onerous clauses in standard form contracts thus far has been the unconscionability doctrine, but that doctrine tends to be reserved for the harshest and severest terms. Therefore, a new tool is needed for courts to …

Toward A Fairer Model Of Consumer Assent To Standard Form Contracts: In Defense Of Restatement Subsection 211(3), Wayne R. Barnes

Washington Law Review

Standard form contracts permeate our very existence, and now even include contracts we assent to online by way of "clickwrap" and "browsewrap" methods. Notwithstanding the ever-increasing presence and complexity of such standard form contracts, both offline and online, the law of contracts in this area has remained fairly static since before the nineteenth century. The only meaningful salve to the problem of misinformed assent to onerous clauses in standard form contracts thus far has been the unconscionability doctrine, but that doctrine tends to be reserved for the harshest and severest terms. Therefore, a new tool is needed for courts to …

Toward A Fairer Model Of Consumer Assent To Standard Form Contracts: In Defense Of Restatement Subsection 211(3), Wayne R. Barnes

Faculty Scholarship

Standard-form contracts permeate our very existence, and now even include contracts we assent to online by way of “clickwrap” and “browsewrap” methods. Notwithstanding the ever-increasing presence and complexity of such standard-form contracts, both offline and online, the law of contracts in this area has remained fairly static since the 18th century and before. The only meaningful salve to this problem thus far has been the unconscionability doctrine, but that doctrine tends to be reserved for the harshest and severest terms. Therefore, a new tool is needed for courts to protect consumers’ interests in this area. Section 211(3) of the Restatement …

Contract Delays: The Impact Of Department Of Defense (Dod) Contractors' Wealth, Jacqueline M. Leskowich

Theses and Dissertations

The monetary incentives used to motivate DoD contractors’ schedule performance on Acquisition Category One programs afford them the opportunity as a whole to earn billions of dollars in addition to their contract award. These incentives are paid 85-90% of the time regardless of schedule performance. While these contractors are paid to avoid delays, there is an indication the delay increases the contractor’s stock value. This research tested the theory that contract delays significantly impact the company’s stock returns. The results found both positive and negative reactions to a firm’s value. Delays caused by budget cuts tend to have a negative …

Conflict Of Interest, Duress And Unconscionability In Quebec Civil Law: Comment On "The Origins Of A Coming Crisis: Renewal Of The'churchill Falls Contract", Sarah P. Bradley

Dalhousie Law Journal

As Professor James Feehan and archivist-historian Melvin Baker describe the circumstances in which the fateful renewal provision of the 1969 Churchill Falls hydro contract was negotiated, they suggest that the legal doctrines of conflict of interest or economic duress might offer a basis upon which the contract, or perhaps the renewal provision, could be impugned. In addition to interesting historical insights, their analysis offers the intriguing possibility that the government of Newfoundland may yet succeed in its long-standing battle to rid itself of its obligations under the grossly disadvantageous Churchill Falls contract.

On Virtual Worlds: Copyright And Contract Law At The Dawn Of The Virtual Age, Erez Reuveni

Indiana Law Journal

This Article argues that copyright law can and should apply to artistic and literary creations occurring entirely in virtual worlds. First, the Article introduces the concept of virtual worlds as places millions of people visit not only for entertainment but also for life and work. Second, the Article reviews the philosophical justifications for copyright, examines objections to applying copyright to virtual, rather than real, creative works, and concludes that neither precludes copyright for virtual creations. Third, the Article articulates how copyright law would function within virtual spaces and reviews copyrightable creations from the perspective of both game developers and players. …

Buckeye Check Cashing, Inc. V. Cardegna: The Latest Example Of How The Supreme Court Has Turned The Federal Arbitration Act Into A State-Defying Monstrosity, Brian C. Groesser

North Carolina Central Law Review

No abstract provided.

Property, Contracts, And Politics, Mark Tushnet

Michigan Law Review

Rebecca Scott is a historian, not an economist. Describing how a dispute over a mule's ownership was resolved, Professor Scott reproduces a receipt two claimants left when they took the mule from the plantation whose manager claimed it as well (p. 185). By contrast, analyzing property relations in the pre-Civil War American South, economic historian Jenny Wahl observes, "[E]conomic historians tend to [use] ... frequency tables, graphs, and charts." The differences in visual aids to understanding indicate the various ways historians and economists approach a single topic-the relation between markets and politics, the latter defined to include the deployment of …

Legal Determinacy And Moral Justification , Jody S. Kraus

William & Mary Law Review

No abstract provided.

Morality And Contract: The Question Of Paternalism, James Gordley

William & Mary Law Review

No abstract provided.

Contract As A Transfer Of Ownership, Peter Benson

William & Mary Law Review

No abstract provided.

The New Wal-Mart Effect: The Role Of Private Contracting In Global Governance, Michael P. Vandenbergh

Vanderbilt Law School Faculty Publications

This Article argues that networks of private contracts serve a public regulatory function in the global environmental arena. These networks fill the regulatory gaps created when global trade increases the exploitation of global commons resources and shifts production to exporting countries with lax environmental standards. As critics of trade liberalization have noted, public responses often are inadequate to address the attendant environmental harms. This Article uses empirical data to examine how private contracting regulates firm behavior, focusing on supply-chain contracting. The Article shows that more than half of the largest firms in eight retail and industrial sectors impose environmental requirements …

The Moral Impossibility Of Contract, Peter A. Alces

William & Mary Law Review

No abstract provided.