PRE-CONTRACTUAL LIABILITY IN ENGLISH, FRENCH AND GERMAN LAW

Abstract

Legal liability for the period which precedes the conclusion of a contract is an issue which has been solved differently in various legal systems. Regulation of this area via legal rules is not a simple task because of the large number of different acts which can occur – from preliminary inquiries about the possibility of cooperation up to detailed agreements which are one step from being contracts. Should the party which broke off the negotiations, despite the other party possibly having expenses and being certain about the conclusion of the final agreement, be sanctioned and how? The aim of this article is to present the answers to these questions which were given by the laws of England, France and Germany through the analysis of statutory rules, jurisprudence and doctrinal opinions. The conclusion that can be reached is that there is a clear cut distinction between the divergent approaches of English law and continental systems in this area, but also that certain unacceptable behaviours during the negotiations are often similarly sanctioned by using different legal concepts.