Phillip Hellwege critically assesses the view according to which the modern law of standard contract terms is a product of 20th century legal development. He traces the roots of this branch of law back into the 19th century. Against this background he gives a critical account of today's law of standard contract terms.

According to orthodox German writing, standard contract terms came into use in the 19th century. The legal profession, however, only reacted in the 20th century by developing special rules addressing the problems following the use of standard contract terms, especially rules on their incorporation into the contract, their interpretation and their fairness control. These rules are looked upon as products of 20th century legal development. Phillip Hellwege traces these rules back into the 19th century. His historical analysis raises a number of questions: Is there a need for special rules on the incorporation of standard contract terms? And should the fairness control be restricted to standard contract terms? After a comparative overview, Hellwege tries to answer these and other questions. He thereby gives a critical account of the modern German law regarding standard contract terms.

Autorentext
ist Inhaber des Lehrstuhls für Bürgerliches Recht, Wirtschaftsrecht und Rechtsgeschichte an der Universität Augsburg.