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A&O Shearman on contract law Blog

Articles: 1-10 of 41

Standard variable rates after transfer: mandatory or permissive?

United Kingdom - February 2 2026 The Court of Appeal has considered whether a bank acquiring a portfolio of residential mortgages was obliged to charge borrowers its own standard…

Standard forms and interpretation norms

United Kingdom - January 21 2026 The UK Supreme Court has ruled on the interpretation of clauses in a standard form JCT Design and Build Contract. For the construction industry, the…

Clarity is king when waiving your rights

United Kingdom - January 12 2026 The Court of Appeal has provided helpful guidance on the circumstances in which the English courts will uphold waivers of valuable legal rights. The…

Red hand doctrine: a new label and a high bar

United Kingdom - December 16 2025 The red hand, or onerous clause, doctrine—which says that an onerous term will not be given effect unless the other party's attention has been…

High Court interprets apparently broad close out rights narrowly

United Kingdom - December 12 2025 The High Court has held that broadly framed “protection of interests” provisions did not permit a firm in special administration to close out its…

Election requires reflection: waiver of a contractual right to terminate requires knowledge of the right

United Kingdom - December 9 2025 The Court of Appeal has said that a party will not waive an express contractual right to terminate merely by continuing to perform after the trigger…

Deemed fulfilment of a condition precedent? An unbelievable fiction!

United Kingdom - December 1 2025 Where a would-be debtor has breached a condition precedent to a debt, that condition precedent cannot be “deemed fulfilled” under English law…

Obligations under a put option: conditional or concurrent?

United Kingdom - November 11 2025 The High Court has looked at whether the obligation to pay for shares under a put option was conditional on certain documentation being provided or…

Mine your language, the literal meaning of the words prevail

United Kingdom - November 6 2025 In Westfield v Harworth, the Court of Appeal affirmed well-known principles of contractual interpretation. A holiday park with a Zone of Interest The…

Clause for concern: the penalty rule, default interest and extortion

United Kingdom - November 5 2025 Default interest, in a loan agreement, at a rate of 4% compounded monthly, was not extortionate given the legitimate interests at play and so was not…