lex contractus

The lex contractus is the law governing a contract.

Factors that relevant to determining the law governing a contract under English law are determined by reference to the Rome Convention, which is an annexure to the Contracts (Applicable Law) Act. Where the parties select the law governing the contract, in all but exceptional circumstances, that is the law that will govern the legal contractual relationship between the parties. Where a contract does not include a choice of law clause, the terms of the contract and the facts of the case are first referred to determine the law of the contract, and thereafter the characteristic performer of the contractual obligations.

Lex Contractus: England

For instance, if litigation was commenced in England on a contract made in a State in the United States, the law of England would be the lex fori, and the law of the state in the United States the lex contractus. In order to fix the place of disputes arising from or connected to a contract, lawyers usually provide legal advice that business contracts should contain a choice of law clause, so the rules of the interpretation are fixed at the outset.

It may be the case that the parties intended that the laws of different countries and territories apply to the contractual document; in such a case dépeçage may dictate that those separate rules of law govern separate parts of the contract.