Join us for our annual Contract Masterclass webinar series, bringing you clear commentary and current insights into a wide range of contractual matters under English law.
These concise 30-minute sessions, conveniently scheduled on Tuesday and Thursday mornings running from 3 November to 26 November, are tailored to equip you with practical guidance. They will cover the most recent legal developments on a range of contractual considerations, providing tips on drafting, interpretation and pointers on where disputes are likely to arise.
Don't miss this opportunity to enhance your understanding of contract law and bring yourself up to date on developments.
Formation of contract - Tuesday 3 November 2026
In this webinar we look at:
- What is needed to form a commercial contract
- The point where an exchange of communications can become a binding contract
- Recent cases on the use of wording such as Subject to Contract to clarify what obligations will be legally binding and from when
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Interpretation - Thursday 5 November 2026
In this webinar we look at:
- The courts’ approach to questions of contractual interpretation
- The distinction between conditions, warranties and innominate terms and parties’ rights in the event of a breach of each
- Key practical points to consider when drafting contracts
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The exercise of contractual discretion - Tuesday 10 November 2026
In this webinar we will cover:
- The different bases on which the courts are increasingly being asked to review and police the exercise of contractually conferred discretions.
- How the courts have approached the exercise of discretions which are expressly required to be exercised in good faith.
- In the absence of express provision, when a duty of good faith in the exercise of a discretion will be said to arise.
- The “Braganza duty” – when it applies and when it does not, and how far it goes
- The exercise of discretion and the concept of improper purpose.
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Effects of breach - Thursday 12 November 2026
In this webinar we look at:
- The position of the parties where one deliberately breaches the contract by failing to enable conditions precedent to be fulfilled.
- A Supreme Court decision that has overturned decades of authority on this.
- A further Supreme Court case on the availability of damages where a party exercises a contractual termination right.
- Is especially clear wording required to entitle a party to damages beyond those available at common law?
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Repudiation, termination and affirmation - Tuesday 17 November 2026
In this webinar we look at:
- When does a breach of contract entitle a counterparty to terminate?
- Rights to terminate where a contract has no specified end date.
- When does continued performance constitute affirmation and remove the right to terminate?
- A recent case on whether lack of knowledge of a right to terminate meant no affirmation through continued performance had taken place.
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Penalty clauses - Thursday 19 November 2026
In this webinar we look at:
- When will a clause be unenforceable as a penalty clause?
- A recent Court of Appeal decision on whether a default interest provision in a loan was void as a penalty.
- Drafting clauses to create consequences upon breach: the dos and don’ts.
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Sanctions clauses - Tuesday 24 November 2026
In this webinar we look at:
- Typical contractual clauses addressing sanctions risks.
- A recent case where the Court of Appeal gave guidance on a party’s right to terminate where there was a risk of a breach of sanctions.
- An enforcement case on making goods available to “persons connected with a prescribed country” and what this means for interpreting and enforcing contractual obligations.
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Dispute resolution clauses - Thursday 26 November 2026
In this webinar we look at:
- Asymmetric jurisdiction clauses, where one party has a choice of forum while the other does not – the advantages and risks.
- Obligations to mediate before commencing proceedings and what is required to make these binding.
- Enforcing settlement agreements and the importance of the scope of the release clause.
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