ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on the nuances of substantive contract law at the national and international levels with a particular emphasis on the area of precontractual liability. The substantive laws and commercial means of doing business are amazingly similar among the world's different legal systems, but the differences in negotiating styles and contract customs are profound. At the international level, the general principles of contract law are less specific and are applied sporadically by national courts. In negotiating with a foreign party, it is important to research the foreign country's cultural and negotiating norms. Some countries, like Japan and China, have different approaches to contract negotiations in that they take additional time to build up a relationship before undertaking the hard bargaining of negotiating the contract. The Principles of International Commercial Contracts (PICC) expressly covers precontractual liability for conduct during the negotiation phase. One of the great innovations of the PICC is that it provides standards for conducting negotiations.
