New Revised 3rd Edition: Contracts in English
Working Title: “Sex, Drugs and Contract Law”
I have always wanted to drag the dreary textbooks on Contract Law into the 21st century with a revitalisation of content, format and evocative titles. I know the subject matter itself is somewhat dry, but as an enthusiastic commercial lawyer I think that a certain joie de vivre should be reflected in the legal literature. However, my thoughts may already have been overtaken by reality. Others seem to have been far more passionately widening the literary market for contract-related titles.
Several years ago I started on the manuscript of a book concerning the uncertainties of contract interpretation, the subtleties of drafting and the need to understand new case law despite the old principles of so-called “black letter law.” However, the working title I selected (“100 Shades of Grey”) was soon to be used (in a slightly modified form) for another book.
Now a search engine has revealed that my other working title for a “Penalty Clause” book has been developed into a complete trilogy of dubious transactions called “Risqué Contracts”. However, the works are not a discussion of risk and contract liability; what the parties practise probably is not law and any performance or frustration is unlikely to be contractual (so much for the dangers of misleading titles and naïve searches in the internet).
In the end, you will be glad to know that I avoided all temptations and kept to a simple, if not exactly exciting, title: “Contracts in English”. And, it seems to have worked, because a revised 3rd edition will soon be available from C.H. Beck. You can order it already in advance at
Happy reading!