The ''Bank guarantee case'' or ''Bürge'' (19 October 1993) BVerfG
is a
German contract law German contract law is rooted in the German Civil Code (''Bürgerliches Gesetzbuch''), which went into effect on 1 January 1900. Reforms of the law since then have included the 2001 Act to Modernise the Law of Obligations.
Major works in English e ...
case, concerning the interpretation of
private law
Private law is that part of a legal system that governs interactions between individual persons. It is distinguished from public law, which deals with relationships between both natural and artificial persons (i.e., organizations) and the st ...
, and particularly the law of
contract
A contract is an agreement that specifies certain legally enforceable rights and obligations pertaining to two or more parties. A contract typically involves consent to transfer of goods, services, money, or promise to transfer any of thos ...
, in a way that is compatible with basic human rights principles. It was held that the power of
freedom of contract must be interpreted in a way that protects people's genuine (rather than formal) autonomy, in those situations where there is a structural
inequality of bargaining power
Inequality of bargaining power in law, economics and social sciences refers to a situation where one party to a bargain, contract or agreement, has more and better alternatives than the other party. This results in one party having greater power ...
.
Facts
The case concerned a series of claimants, including spouses and children, of a party which had mortgaged the family home, in order to secure a loan from a bank. The banks had required that, in return for the loans, the family would guarantee the debts. The validity of these contracts were challenged.
Judgment
See also
*''
Barclays Bank plc v O’Brien
is an English contract law case relating to undue influence. It set out the basic categories of undue influence as:
*(1) actual undue influence
*(2A) presumed undue influence from a special relationship
*(2B) presumed undue influence from readi ...
''
994
Year 994 ( CMXCIV) was a common year starting on Monday of the Julian calendar.
Events
By place
Byzantine Empire
* September 15 – Battle of the Orontes: Fatimid forces, under Turkish general Manjutakin (also the governor ...
1 AC 180
Notes
References
*BS Markesinis, H Unberath and A Johnston, ''The German Law of Contract'' (2010) Case No 81, for partial translation
Contract case law
Federal Constitutional Court cases
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