‘Evaluate the extent to which the English law of contract addresses inequality of bargaining power’

‘The law of contract must strike a balance between two competing aims’ . Many of the rules governing contract are to ensure fairness and there are a number of distinct, though sometimes overlapping, doctrines concerning this area of English law. The question of fairness may be made in relation to the way in which the contract is made (procedural unfairness) or in the terms resulting from the contract (substantive unfairness).

In English law the judicial approach to contracts, which are unfair or discriminatory, has expanded significantly over time. It was restricted in the nineteenth century by the assumption through the freedom of economic decision, parties are enabled to choose the terms on which they enter contracts, based on what they consider advantageous to their interests. Limiting this freedom to relieve inequality was seen as a legislative task for Parliament. There are now principles in place within English law to address the problem of unfair contracts.

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