Introduction
An introduction to contract law encompasses the fields of contract law and sales law, two central areas within the study of contract law. The ability of various actors to enter into contracts with one another and predict their legal standing as a result is a crucial prerequisite for a functioning market. The parties must be able to know if and when a binding agreement has been made, what the agreement entails, and whether there are any grounds for invalidity, such as the agreement being entered into under duress or containing unreasonable content. These questions are addressed in the field of contract law.
Even if a valid agreement has been made and its content has been established through interpretation, disputes may arise between the parties regarding how the contract should be performed, whether the actual performance is contractual, and what should happen if the performance is not contractual. These issues are addressed on a general level for several types of agreements in the field of obligation law (fourth semester). In the introduction to contract law, we will focus on one type of agreement – the purchase agreement – whereby ownership of a thing is transferred from one person to another in exchange for a consideration in the form of money. The subject of sales law primarily deals with sales agreements governed by the Sales Act and the Consumer Sales Act.