Overview

This collection explores the nature and justification of mandatory rules (which are non-excludable) and default rules (which can be modified or excluded by the parties) in contract and commercial law. The collection distinguishes between different kinds of mandatory and default rules that govern commercial transactions. It also explores the choice of rule in various situations. Which rules are mandatory, and are there clearly understood and convincing reasons for parties to be denied choice? In the case of default rules, on what basis is the default position selected? The collection also explores the fundamentally important relationship between default rules and interpretation, and, relatedly, between default rules and contractual risk allocation. The collection will be of interest to academics and practitioners working across the field of commercial law.

Full Product Details

Author:   William Day (3 Verulam Buildings, UK) ,  Dr Jonathan Morgan (University of Cambridge, UK) ,  Professor Andrew Robertson (University of Melbourne, Australia) ,  Katy Barnett (University of Melbourne, Australia)
Publisher:   Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
Imprint:   Hart Publishing
ISBN:  

9781509971206

ISBN 10:   1509971203
Pages:   384
Publication Date:   19 February 2026
Audience:   Professional and scholarly ,  Professional & Vocational
Format:   Hardback
Publisher's Status:   Forthcoming
Availability:   Manufactured on demand  

Table of Contents

1. Mandatory and Default Rules: Issues and Themes, Katy Barnett, William Day, Jonathan Morgan and Andrew Robertson 2. Default and Mandatory Rules in Contract and Commercial Law: A Judicial Perspective, Sir David Foxton 3. Default Rules, Interpretation and Risk Allocation, Andrew Robertson 4. Party Intention, Default Rules and Contract Theory, Ryan Catterwell 5. Default Rules in Contract Formation, William Day 6. Default Terms in Sale of Goods Contracts, Louise Gullifer and Louise Merrett 7. When it’s Mandatory to be ‘Reasonable’: the Nature and Application of Reasonableness under the Unfair Contract Terms Act 1977, Devon Airey 8. Mandatory Statutory Rules, Consumer Contracts and Contractual Interpretation, Jeannie Marie Paterson 9. Frustration Dissected: Mandatory and Default Rules, Jonathan Morgan 10. Date of Breach as a Sticky Default Rule and the Role of the Court in Assessing Reasonable Mitigatory Measures, Katy Barnett 11. The Express Modification of Contract Law’s Default Remedial Rules, David Winterton 12. Three Forms of Default Rules (in the Law of Unjust Enrichment), Rory Gregson 13. Equity in Commerce: Why do we need Default Rules?, Man Yip 14. From Mandatory to Default Rules: Trusts in the ‘Commercial’ Context, Ying Khai Liew

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Author Information

Katy Barnett is Professor in Law at the University of Melbourne, Australia. William Day is Fellow of Downing College, Cambridge and a barrister at 3 Verulam Buildings, UK. Jonathan Morgan is Professor of English Law and Fellow of Corpus Christi College, University of Cambridge, and a barrister at Essex Court Chambers, UK. Andrew Robertson is Professor of Law and Director of Studies in Private Law at the University of Melbourne, Australia.

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