Description
Book SynopsisHugo Grotius is of particular importance in the history of continental European contract law. It stands on the threshold between the medieval or late scholastic and the natural law contract doctrines of the 17th and 18th centuries. Grotius was one of the first to construct a differentiated contract doctrine emancipated from the system of Roman contract types. In doing so, he made a significant contribution to the freedom of form and type of modern contract law. The present study traces how Grotius understanding of contract developed from his early writings to the most recent revisions of De Iure Belli ac Pacis. A particular focus is on the arguments used by Grotius to justify the general effectiveness and legal binding nature of contractual agreements and how these arguments continue to develop across works.
