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Of this edition Marvin speaks highly of Evans: "His notes are comprehensive and learned, and deserve a careful perusal in connexion with the text, and he is entitled to considerable praise for having furnished Pothier on Obligations to the profession in so good and accurate an English garb." Marvin, Legal Bibliography 578. Holdsworth agrees: "He helped to make English lawyers acquainted with Pothier's work, and, by so doing, did considerable service to the development of the English law of contract..." Holdsworth, A History of English Law XIII:467. Evans [1767-1821] was a scholarly English lawyer. To Pothier's work he added an Appendix on several topics of English law, organized as a treatise on the law of evidence. Pothier's treatise on civil law was "... soon recognized as a major contribution to legal science, translated by Evans and frequently cited in British Courts." Walker, Oxford Companion to Law 973. Reprint of the uncommon Evans translation, the English second edition which followed the American edition of 1802 (translated by F.X. Martin), which is also available as a facsimile reprint published by The Lawbook Exchange, Ltd.

'Contract as Promise' is a study of the foundations and structure of contract law. It has both theoretical and pedagogic purposes. It moves from trust to promise to the nuts and bolts of contract law. The author shows that contract law has an underlying unifying moral and practical structure. This second edition retains the original text, and includes a new Preface. It also includes a lengthy postscript that takes account of scholarly and practical developments in the field over the last thirty years, especially the large and rich law and economics literature.

As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to take its toll, contractual parties have frequently faced significant obstacles in performing their contractual obligations due to unexpected impediments arising from the pandemic and government measures taken in response. This indispensable book – the most comprehensive comparative examination of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on contractual performance – discusses the legal provisions and doctrines available to address these issues. The book examines under what circumstances COVID-19-related impediments may excuse contractual performance or lead to modification or termination of the affected contractual obligations in twelve representative civil and common law jurisdictions – the United States, England and Wales, Singapore, Brazil, Germany, France, Switzerland, Austria, Hong Kong, Costa Rica, China, and Russia. For each country, the book examines the following aspects in depth: the relevant fundamental legal principles; the various legal emergency valves available to an obligor to respond to COVID-19-related events; any remedies available to the obligee; selected examples for specific government measures related to particular types of contracts (e.g., construction, employment, lease agreements); and how the legal framework applies in typical factual scenarios. As further legal and factual developments occur, and with further jurisdictions being added, this publication will continue to be updated both online and in print. The book provides a detailed explanation under what conditions the emergency valves specific to each jurisdiction may apply. It cuts through the seeming complexity of the various legal rules and doctrines in these jurisdictions and shows that they often produce similar results in practice. The book thus opens up a wealth of insights for businesses, practitioners, and academics around the globe by providing an easily accessible analytical framework across key jurisdictions and typical factual scenarios. ‘Definitely mandatory reading for practitioners and academics alike!’ –Klaus Peter Berger, University of Cologne ‘Everyone who has had or is likely to have a brush with a COVID-19-induced legal issue would be well advised to keep this book within arm’s reach.’ – Davinder Singh, Davinder Singh Chambers LLC, Singapore ‘The “holy book” for all those lawyers whose clients become ensnared in the rising attempts to fix legal liability midst the rampant COVID-19.’ – Charles Brower, Twenty Essex, London

This text explains and analyzes the law of contract, and provides a detailed examination of many areas of controversy and difficulty. Amongst recent developments examined is the Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Bill.