On the Writing and the Interpretation of Contracts
Steven Shavell
Harvard Law School; National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER)
Journal of Law, Economics, and Organization, Vol. 22, No. 2, Fall 2006
Harvard Law and Economics Discussion Paper No. 445
Abstract:
The major theme of this article is that the interpretation of contracts is in the interests of contracting parties. The general reasons are (a) that interpretation may improve on otherwise imperfect contracts; and (b) that the prospect of interpretation allows parties to write simpler contracts and thus to conserve on contracting effort. A method of interpretation is defined as a function whose argument is the written contract and whose value is another contract, the interpreted contract, which is what actually governs the parties' joint enterprise. It is shown that interpretation is superior to enforcement of contracts as written, and the optimal method of interpretation is analyzed.
JEL Classification: D00, D8, K12
Accepted Paper Series
Suggested Citation
Shavell, Steven, On the Writing and the Interpretation of Contracts. Journal of Law, Economics, and Organization, Vol. 22, No. 2, Fall 2006; Harvard Law and Economics Discussion Paper No. 445. Available at SSRN: http://ssrn.com/abstract=883692
