ABSTRACT
In recent years the term ‘relational’ to describe a class of contract has gained currency in English Courts. Whereas contract class is usually identifiable by type such as landlord and tenant or employment, ‘relational’ contracts are variable agminates of indeterminate incidents, employing confusing, and inappropriate, epi-fiduciary language. I explore the incidents in an unsuccessful effort to find machinery which predicts whether a contract is relational. I review cases to determine how existing Contract law deals with each incident. I review the theoretical literature, seeking alignment between theory-based norms and case-embedded incidents. I question why Judges have not made the connection between incidents and norms. I propose an operable definition of relational contract, proposing four ‘incidents’ using a domestic, new kitchen, contract as a thread. Central to my definition is a claim that implicit or express in such contracts is an obligation to maintain, develop or build a relationship.
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Soper, C Haward, What is a Relational Contract? Does Coherence Lurk Amongst Shapeshifting Incidents and Grandiloquent Language? (March 1, 2023), Singapore Journal of Legal Studies, March 2023, pp 52-82.
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